Collaboration gives students opportunity for professional-level experience

When Dr. Xiaoguang Ma, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering, set out to teach a new computer engineeringcourse this year, he knew he wanted a way to connect theory with real-life application in order to deliver the hands-on education that the University of Wisconsin-Platteville is known for. What resulted is a collaboration with a global software manufacturer that is opening the door to enhanced student learning and new student-led research opportunities.

In his Computer Engineering 3510 course, one of the topics Ma focuses on is operational technology, which refers to the hardware and software used to monitor and control physical devices and processes in various industries. An important component of this is a supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system, which collects data from sensors and devices and sends it back to a central computer, where it can be monitored and controlled from a single, remote location. ­While Ma had access to many industry-donated hardware devices, he lacked the software necessary for students to create a full SCADA system - mainly because licensing such a software is often cost prohibitive.

That's when he connected with Garrett Miller, sales manager at COPA-DATA USA Corp., who offered free education licenses for their zenon software. zenon is a SCADA platform that is widely used across various industries worldwide.

"Dr. Ma reached out to us because our software is used by a lot of electrical engineers to build substation HMIs," explained Miller. "When operators control substations, they use a big tablet screen, and our software is set up in these facilities to be the controller. So, we offered to develop a lab for students to build a project in our software that would be similar to what our customers actually deploy."

Ma said he knew the learning curve for a professional software like zenon would be steep, but COPA-DATA offered to host help sessions and provide continuous technical support throughout the process. He integrated it into his course last spring, and while students found it a challenge to learn at the beginning, Ma said by the time they finished the final project, they appreciated the opportunity.

"It's a really great effort for students to see a professional-level, industry-level software like this," said Ma. "They are not only learning the book, but they are learning by doing. We talk about having an 'entrepreneurial mindset.' If we introduce students to real-life applications to show them the real-life cases of using this, they'll have more opportunity to develop their entrepreneurial mindset. If they see the capability of real software, it helps them be innovative and excited."

Over a period of four weeks, Ma's students gained experience using zenon to control and monitor physical Intelligent Electronic Devices. This gave students the opportunity to become zenon-certified - a skill they were able to add to their resumes.

"A lot of employers require this certification after getting hired," explained Miller. "So, now these students are one step ahead."

In addition to use in his class, Ma said there are a number of opportunities to use zenon in undergraduate research projects on campus - including cybersecurity research and building a micro-scaler to manage Pioneer Farm's microgrid network.

Both Ma and Miller said they are looking forward to continuing their collaboration in future semesters and introducing more students to zenon. The strong collaboration, they both said, was the reason the project was successful.

"Garrett's collaboration and assistance has been key," said Ma. "Without him we cannot do this. First, financially, we can't cover the cost for all students. And, because there is such a learning curve, without his help we couldn't make it far. Garrett's enthusiasm for higher education and helping students learn, combined with assistance from his team, was key for our success."

"Dr. Ma really put in the time and effort," added Miller. "His approach to teaching was really good. He made sure he understood it himself before teaching it to students. That was a lot of the reason for success, not just the software."

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