ECE 2799: Electrical and Computer Engineering Design
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Key Subscription Sources
Tip: Strategy: Word choice is essential for search success! See Finding Articles tutorial.
Off campus?
Set up proxy server in your browser for Off campus access to resources with
Background Information
- Google | Google Scholar (use OR in between similar terms or phrases)
- How Stuff Works: Solar Cells (or other renewable energy)
- News sources: Google News, LEXIS-NEXIS Academic
- Browse government sites: Search with site:gov or a broader search: solar OR "renewable energy" and site:gov
- Search/browse journals list: search solar or reneable energy to browse journals we subscribe to such as Journal of solar energy engineering.
- More Library Research Guides: Museums | Sustainability
Interactive Renewable Energy Exhibit Examples:
Books: Print & Electronic
Search the Library Catalog for items @ WPI or WorldCat to search beyond our library.
Technical Handbooks
Search a Technical Handbook database: ENGnetBASE | Knovel to search full text of electronic handbooks.
Patents
Search the USPTO patent database for a patents similar to your project idea. Review the drawings by clicking the IMAGES link top center. If you are not seeing the images, try to search Google Patents or enter patent number in pat2pdf.org to get a PDF version.
Worldwide Patents
Search ESP@CENET for worldwide patents, use Advanced Search to screen by date, assignee (organization/company), and title/abstract keywords. The library also maintains a listing of other patents search engines which may be useful. More patent search tools...
Research Tools to Explore
| Understanding the Technology | Strategies and Information Sources |
|---|---|
The "science" of how products work - general & background information |
Search Library Catalog for general encyclopedias and handbooks to gather background
information. Search the following
|
Who are the key players? |
Identify companies who make similar products:
|
Science and Manufacturing: How are the products made? |
Parts Catalogs: |
| Understanding the Market | |
Who needs these products? Market size? |
Ask as many questions as possible, then try to find sources to answer these questions. Such as, who needs your product? If hospitals, how many hospitals are there? How many doctors? How many women or children are in this market? What percentage would need the product, etc.
|
Do key players already distribute to the geographic markets being targeted? How are they doing? |
Search for companies, look through product literature, scan
through 10-K report or Annual Report to Shareholders.
Hoovers |
Customer preferences and product requirements |
Beyond your own primary or first hand research...
|
Determine Impact or Scope of Problem |
|
| Understanding Regulations and Standards | |
Is this type of product regulated? By Whom? Do standards apply? Which ones? |
Seek out government regulatory bodies and international trade associations such as: See our Finding Standards Guide, but start with common standards sources such as:
|
| Legal Issues | |
Are there Federal, State or Local laws that could affect your design idea? |
Search Legal News or Code to assure you are within legal limits: |
Only Finding a Citation? Getting the Full Text
- Is the journal online or here in the library? Search our Journals, Magazines, & Newspapers
- Visit another library: Search WorldCat to find one
- Request delivery from another library: Interlibrary Loan.
Give Credit! Cite Your Sources
Try Refworks: a bibliographic database & citation management tool. Create a database of your references then output them into many formats, including IEEE style. More...
Questions?
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Last modified: Oct 28, 2009, 14:21 EDT
