Embedded Systems & IoT Curriculum Instructor

I taught applied embedded systems and IoT courses for a local college in Peterborough, Ontario, covering microcontroller programming, electronics, Linux-based systems, networking, and practical device integration.

Around 2010, I taught an embedded programming course built around a small Pololu 32U4 robot platform. The course introduced students to microcontroller programming, hardware interaction, sensors, motors, and the practical debugging skills required when software interacts with the physical world.

In 2025, I taught an embedded IoT-focused course using a PICWEB development board and a Raspberry Pi. Students worked through labs covering PIC C18 programming, Raspberry Pi setup, HABian/openHABian installation, networking concepts, electronics, and basic device control. The course culminated in turning the PICWEB board into a rudimentary IoT device controlled through the Raspberry Pi.

The course also included hands-on electronics topics such as opto-isolated H-bridge motor control for driving DC motors and interfacing with traditional parallel LCD displays. I focused on explaining not just how the circuits worked, but why specific design choices were made. Student feedback specifically highlighted the value of that approach, particularly when compared with explanations that only provided answers without the underlying reasoning.

This was the first year the IoT course was delivered in a school setting after pandemic lockdown measures had ended. The existing curriculum had been designed around students working from their home networks, which created a practical challenge when moving the labs into a shared classroom environment. To solve this, I configured the Raspberry Pi single-board computers to act as the wireless network for the lab setup, giving students a predictable environment for connecting the PICWEB boards and completing the IoT workflow.

This teaching work drew heavily on my industry experience in embedded Linux, custom hardware, firmware, electronics, networking, and product development. It also required translating complex technical concepts into clear labs that students could follow, troubleshoot, and build on.