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Developing a MATLAB/Simulink RTWT Based Hydraulic Servo Control Design Experiment

Abstract While one of the stated goals of the Mechanical Engineering Controls course is to develop the tools to design a controller, previous lab experiences did not include an experimental exercise in controller design. This was primarily due to the difficulty in implementing a controller that is robust and flexible enough to accommodate different student designs within the short time constraints of a three hour lab period. This paper describes an effort to use the Mathworks Real Time Windows Target to implement student controller designs on real hardware in a lab setting. Students use experimental data and a physically based model to design the controller for a hydraulic servo control system. A system transfer function is estimated from a frequency response experiment. Then a controller design is conducted using classical PID controller design techniques and a Simulink model. Finally when students have completed a controller design, they are allowed to implement it on the experimental apparatus and measure the system performance. They are then given a second chance to fine tune the model. The control is implemented with the Real Time Windows Target using a data acquisition card on a PC. A competition for the best performance also creates an exciting and competitive learning atmosphere. Assessments are presented that indicate the improvement in learning outcomes from the change in the lab exercise.

Introduction The Engineering College at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo has a strong tradition of hands-on, “learn by doing” education. A key component is the lab intensive courses where for example in the Mechanical Engineering Department a minimum of nine lab intensive courses are required in the core ME curriculum in addition to labs from support courses such as chemistry, physics, etc. Our philosophy is that students learn best through a combination of lecture and lab experiences and industry feedback indicates that our undergraduates are unparalleled at hitting the ground running and working with real world problems.

Mechanical Controls is a four unit, required senior level course that consists of three-one hour lectures and one-three hour lab per week for the ten week quarter. The course covers single input single output linear system modeling, time domain analysis, transfer functions, root locus, frequency response methods, PID and lead lag controllers. The lab is taken concurrently with the lecture and is designed to support the topics covered in lecture while also illustrating the realities of real world systems, modeling and controller implementation. There are currently four experiments: a two week analog DC servo position control experiment, a two week LabVIEW based two tank water level regulator experiment, a two week LabVIEW based hydraulic servo control experiment and a one week frequency response experiment using the DC servo apparatus.

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Birdsong, C. (2007, June), Developing A Matlab/Simulink Rtwt Based Hydraulic Servo Control Design Experiment Paper presented at 2007 Annual Conference & Exposition, Honolulu, Hawaii. 10.18260/1-2--3032