Ever since I was little, I’ve had a fascination with mechanics and how things were assembled. As soon as I had enough dexterity in my hands to utilize a screwdriver, and accumulated enough knowledge that I knew that a screw held something together. I would attempt to take anything apart so long as no one stopped me. As time progressed, this fascination turned into a borderline obsession. Watching my uncle repair our family sedan solidified my aspirations to work on cars as a profession. RC cars turned into skateboards, skateboards turned into bicycles, bicycles turned into cars. I was fortunate enough that my dad passed on his 2007 Mustang to me as a graduation present. This opened the floodgates of possibilities and I started to modify and change anything and everything that I could within my realm of skill.
This had a heavy influence on my after-high school plans. I knew that whatever I ended up doing as a profession, it had to have something to do with a car. I entered college in the fall of 2014 with every intention of graduating with a B.S. in mechanical engineering. I was excited to for the years to come, but after two years in Mechanical Engineering, it dawned on me that this major is not for me. After a long discussion with my academic advisor and my family, I switched my major to Information and Computer Sciences in the summer of 2017. This left me in a dilemma, it was a last minute change and I no longer knew what I was going to do with this new degree.
My first semester in ICS was eye opening. I figured out how I was going to use this degree and still work on cars. This is where my interest in Software Engineering and Cars collide. Most if not all modern car engines are managed by a fairly sophisticated engine control unit in which I have taken a particular intrest in after my own experience with engine tuning. A computer that takes in the inputs of the various sensors in the engine compartment to actively adapt the fuel mapping and engine tuning to better suit the conditions at hand. With companies such as Holley, AEM electronics and Haltech producing and developing standalone engine control units that can be added to older engines to give them the same capabilities as modern engines. Holley’s standalone implements a self-learn electronic fuel injection system that surpasses the capabilities of stock ECU’s. I knew that this is the niche where both my passion for cars and Information and Computer Sciences could coexist.
I hope that software engineering can help develop my skills to help me design and develop a self-learning EFI systems. I hope to gain experience with adaptive software and Artificial Intelligence, to improve the capabilities of ECUs. Current ECUs can only account for changes within a given range on a stock engine and leaves no room for adjustment once any component is changed from stock. I hope that with the skills and experiences gained from software engineering, I can develop an adaptive ECU that takes things a step further than even Holly’s standalone and increase the range of adjustment to tune itself and accomodate modifications done to the engine. With experience in artifical intelligence, the Engine control unit can make changes as the engine is ran for longer periods of time, and adapt not only to the modifications done and to the environmental conditions, but also to the driving style of the driver, increasing throttle response and moving the fuel map to introduce power at a different rpm range.