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Low-cost Open-architecture Experimental Platform for Dynamic Systems and Feedback Control

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Conference

2021 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access

Location

Virtual Conference

Publication Date

July 26, 2021

Start Date

July 26, 2021

End Date

July 19, 2022

Conference Session

Developing Teamwork, Student Attitudes, and Hardware Solutions for Laboratory Courses: Experimentation and Laboratory-oriented Studies Division

Tagged Division

Experimentation and Laboratory-Oriented Studies

Page Count

15

DOI

10.18260/1-2--37469

Permanent URL

https://peer.asee.org/37469

Download Count

297

Paper Authors

biography

Sergio Arturo Esteban California State Polytechnic University, Pomona

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Sergio Esteban is an alum from Cal Poly Pomona's Mechanical Engineering undergraduate program. He will be joining the California Institute of Technology's Mechanical Engineering Ph.D. program this Fall 2021 to study robot controls and dynamics. Throughout his career, he's had the opportunity to take roles as a researcher, test and assembly engineer, design engineer, tutor, and mentor. Sergio has worked at engineering institutions such as the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Stanford University, Caltech, the SETI Institute, and Raytheon Intelligence & Space. Topics of his work include robotics, space exploration, and mechanical engineering research.

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biography

Hector Damian Lopez Jr California State Polytechnic University, Pomona

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Hector D. Lopez is an undergraduate Mechanical Engineering student with a minor in Mathematics at Cal Poly Pomona who will graduate in May 2021. Throughout his undergraduate career, he had the opportunity to take roles as a researcher, design engineer, manufacturer engineer, electrical engineer, and supervisor engineer. Hector's work includes robotics, animatronics, mechatronics, mechanical systems, and electrical circuits.

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biography

Nolan Tsuchiya P.E. California State Polytechnic University, Pomona

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Dr. Nolan Tsuchiya is an Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. Dr. Tsuchiya obtained his Ph.D. from University of California Los Angeles (UCLA in the area of Dynamic Systems and Control). Dr. Tsuchiya teaches Controls Engineering, System Dynamics, and Computer Programming courses using MATLAB/SIMULINK at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. He is currently the advisor for the CPP Formula and BAJA collegiate racing teams. He holds an active California PE license.

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Patrick Mannion California State Polytechnic University, Pomona

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Abstract

Traditional system dynamics and control systems learning platforms are costly, non-portable, and require substantial laboratory space. Consequently, these traditional systems must be shared amongst large groups of students, resulting in students getting less than adequate individual hands-on time. Low-cost take-home kits offer an alternative way to deliver commensurate learning experiences found with expensive platforms but at an affordable price bracket. This paper presents the design and educational function of a sub-$100, portable, and multidisciplinary pendulum platform. This low-cost experimental apparatus provides an opportunity for students to apply conceptual knowledge without the restriction of geographic location. The learning outcomes are identical to their expensive traditional counterparts, and concepts covered include: system identification, modeling, simulation, s-domain analysis, frequency domain analysis, and feedback control principles. Setting this low-cost experimental system apart from others is the open architecture. The hardware is comprised of common off-the-shelf components and 3D printed parts for which the design files are publicly available. Computer-assisted data acquisition for the platform is made possible via MATLAB/Simulink, LabView, or Arduino and allows for sufficiently fast sample rates with no proprietary software or plugins. This offers students the opportunity to become proficient with industry-standard software packages. This paper describes the design and educational outcomes of a sub-$100 take-home mechatronics kit designed to equal the learning objectives afforded by a traditional laboratory experiment.

Esteban, S. A., & Lopez, H. D., & Tsuchiya, N., & Mannion, P. (2021, July), Low-cost Open-architecture Experimental Platform for Dynamic Systems and Feedback Control Paper presented at 2021 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access, Virtual Conference. 10.18260/1-2--37469

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