Undergraduate Research: A Step Toward Innovative and Creative Solutions in Engineering

An undergraduate research project provides the future engineer with extensive skills and knowledge related to the theme of the developed project and to the scientific methodology used to plan and perform it. Moreover, it introduces the student into the research world, putting him in contact with experienced researchers and scientific literature. In addition, the student has the opportunity to present to the academic community the results of his work through seminars, lectures, and papers, also developing his skills of reading, writing, and oral communication. In this context, the methodology proposed in this article to plan and execute an undergraduate research project is of paramount importance for engineering students. In the case study presented, the students involved in the development of the project achieved a reasonable synthesis of knowledge on image and video processing as well as in prototyping digital circuits using programmable logic devices and hardware description language, themes only partially addressed (and not necessarily with a connection to each other) during the undergraduate course. Thus, students can avail themselves of these concepts in future applications in these areas, whether as a professional at a design company or as a researcher. The interconnection between the issues approached by the project and the theoretical fundamentals acquired during the studies is always a goal, which reinforces the importance of constructing a solid conceptual foundation to lead to the success of the research project. The project developed in GEPSIN completely achieved its goals as well as the ability to continuously contribute to ongoing and future projects on image and video processing. Future research on the subject will take advantage of the platform to verify the achieved performance under real constraints.