Flowgraphs as a Teaching Aid

Abstract

To stimulate wider use of flowgraphs as an aid in teaching undergraduate electronics, a self-contained tutorial account of flowgraph techniques is presented, which assumes no prior specialized knowledge. This elementary, but systematic and detailed review of flowgraphs is grouped around three major techniques: 1) problem formulation and model definition suitable for coding of input data compatible with programmed data processing, 2) construction procedures with emphasis on understanding those flowgraph properties upon which these procedures are based, and 3) symbolic and numerical evaluation as an initial step towards model optimization. Elementary but representative examples are presented step-by-step, examined in great detail, and frequently related to similar but more complex problems reported in the current professional literature.