Micro-controller based update of inexpensive undergraduate control systems laboratory hardware

Abstract

This paper describes an updated version of the hardware used for an undergraduate control systems laboratory, and describes a complete set of laboratory experiments for an introductory control systems course using the hardware. It applies to a system described in a previous paper [1]. We continue to update the hardware and the software for this system because it is has proven to be a very successful platform on which we base the laboratory experience for our students. The mechanical and electromechanical hardware for the lab has remained nearly the same for well over a decade, but is still a reflection of modern hardware used in industry. It utilizes a brushless servo motor, a transmission element with mechanical compliance, high resolution optical encoders, and a motor controller with a current control loop. The latest update is mainly comprised of changing the controller to a micro-controller based system and a graphical user interface (GUI) written in MATLAB. The microcontroller is a 32 bit ARM based system with a floating point coprocessor and all the peripherals needed to implement the controller, including a full speed USB interface. This latest generation of the system is the least expensive, the most efficiently connected to MATLAB, the easiest to use and the most reliable in terms of both hardware and of software.