CE142-4-AU-CO:
Mathematics for Engineers I

The details
2026/27
Computer Science and Electronic Engineering (School of)
Colchester Campus
Autumn
Undergraduate: Level 4
Current
Thursday 08 October 2026
Friday 18 December 2026
15
18 September 2025

 

Requisites for this module
(none)
(none)
(none)
(none)

 

CE103, CE262, CE269, CE294

Key module for

BENGH610 Electronic Engineering,
BENGH611 Electronic Engineering (Including Year Abroad),
BENGH61P Electronic Engineering (Including Foundation Year),
BENGHP10 Electronic Engineering (Including Placement Year),
MENGH613 Electronic Engineering,
MENGH614 Electronic Engineering (Integrated Masters, Including Placement Year),
BENGH641 Communications Engineering,
BENGHP41 Communications Engineering (Including Foundation Year),
BENGHPK1 Communications Engineering (Including Placement Year),
BENGHQ41 Communications Engineering (Including Year Abroad),
BENGH615 Robotic Engineering,
BENGH616 Robotic Engineering (Including Year Abroad),
BENGH617 Robotic Engineering (Including Placement Year),
BENGH618 Robotic Engineering (Including Foundation Year),
BSC H631 Electronics,
BSC H631N1 Electronics,
BSC H632 Electronics (Including Year Abroad),
BSC H632N1 Electronics (Including Year Abroad),
BSC H633 Electronics (Including Placement Year),
BSC H633N1 Electronics (Including Placement Year),
BENGH730 Mechatronic Systems,
BENGH731 Mechatronic Systems (Including Year Abroad),
BENGH732 Mechatronic Systems (Including Placement Year),
BENGH733 Mechatronic Systems (Including Foundation Year),
BENGH169 Neural Engineering with Psychology,
BENGH170 Neural Engineering with Psychology (including Placement Year),
BENGH171 Neural Engineering with Psychology (including Year Abroad),
BENGH172 Neural Engineering with Psychology (Including Foundation Year),
BSC H737 Mechatronics,
BSC H738 Mechatronics (including Placement Year),
BSC H739 Mechatronics (including Year Abroad),
BSC H167 Neural Technology with Psychology,
BSC H168 Neural Technology with Psychology (including Year Abroad),
BSC H176 Neural Technology with Psychology (including Placement Year),
BSC H717 Robotics,
BSC H718 Robotics (including Placement Year),
BSC H719 Robotics (including Year Abroad)

Module description

This module will introduce engineering mathematics to students, including a number of special functions: trigonometric, logarithmic and exponential. It will explain the operations of differentiation and its applications. Complex number operations will be demonstrated along with complex roots of polynomials. Students will also learn to perform basic operations with vectors and matrices. 

Module aims

The aims of this module are:



  • To introduce engineering mathematics to students of electronics, robotics, neural engineering and telecommunications. The course will be illuminated by lectures, practical laboratory sessions and assignments in MATLAB.

Module learning outcomes

By the end of this module, students will be expected to be able to:


1. Recognise, and perform routine calculations with a number of special functions, including trigonometric, logarithmic and exponential functions.


2. Define and explain the operations of differentiation and integration, and use appropriate rules to find derivatives and integrals.


3. Execute basic operations with vectors (including products of vectors) and matrices (+, -, x, determinants, inverse), and solve systems of linear equations via matrices.


4. Execute basic operations with complex numbers (+, -, x, /, *), convert between Cartesian and polar forms and find roots of polynomials (real and complex).

Module information

Outline Syllabus


 


Special Functions



  • Polynomial, trigonometric, logarithmic and exponential functions;

  • Powers and Logarithms, inverse operations, rules of logarithms.


 


Differentiation and integration



  • The derivative function;

  • Some common derivatives;

  • Finding the derivative of combinations of functions;

  • Applications of differentiation;

  • Indefinite and definite integrals;

  • Some common integrals and integration methods;

  • Visualisation with MATLAB.


 


Vectors and Matrices



  • Vectors and vector quantities;

  • Basic vectors, products of vectors;

  • Vector calculation (addition, subtraction, and multiplication);

  • Matrix calculations (addition, subtraction, and multiplication);

  • The matrix form of a set of linear equations;

  • Determinants and inversion of 2x2 matrices;

  • Visualisation with MATLAB.


 


Complex Numbers



  • The square root of negative numbers, and the number j;

  • Cartesian representation of complex numbers: addition, subtraction, multiplication and division;

  • Polar representation: multiplication and division, conversion between forms;

  • Applications to A.C. Linear circuits;

  • Complex arithmetic with MATLAB.

Learning and teaching methods

This module will be delivered via:

  • Lectures (20 hours),
  • Labs (20 hours) and
  • Classes (10 hours)

Bibliography

This module does not appear to have a published bibliography for this year.

Assessment items, weightings and deadlines

Coursework / exam Description Deadline Coursework weighting
Coursework   Progress Test 1 - (in person, closed book)      
Coursework   Progress Test 2 - (in person, closed book)     
Coursework   Lab Quizzes (5 in-lab quizzes) Closed Book     
Coursework   Take Home Lab Exercises 1 - Take-home open book exercises submitted to FASER     
Coursework   Take Home Lab Exercises 2 - Take-home open book exercises submitted to FASER     
Exam  Main exam: In-Person, Open Book (Restricted), 120 minutes during January 
Exam  Reassessment Main exam: In-Person, Open Book (Restricted), 120 minutes during September (Reassessment Period) 

Exam format definitions

  • Remote, open book: Your exam will take place remotely via an online learning platform. You may refer to any physical or electronic materials during the exam.
  • In-person, open book: Your exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer to any physical materials such as paper study notes or a textbook during the exam. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
  • In-person, open book (restricted): The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer only to specific physical materials such as a named textbook during the exam. Permitted materials will be specified by your department. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
  • In-person, closed book: The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may not refer to any physical materials or electronic devices during the exam. There may be times when a paper dictionary, for example, may be permitted in an otherwise closed book exam. Any exceptions will be specified by your department.

Your department will provide further guidance before your exams.

Overall assessment

Coursework Exam
50% 50%

Reassessment

Coursework Exam
50% 50%
Module supervisor and teaching staff
Dr Tao Gao, email: t.gao@essex.ac.uk.
Dr Tao Gao
School Office, email: csee-schooloffice (non-Essex users should add @essex.ac.uk to create full e-mail address), Telephone 01206 872770

 

Availability
No
No
Yes

External examiner

No external examiner information available for this module.
Resources
Available via Moodle
Of 4 hours, 2 (50%) hours available to students:
2 hours not recorded due to service coverage or fault;
0 hours not recorded due to opt-out by lecturer(s), module, or event type.

 

Further information
Computer Science and Electronic Engineering (School of)

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