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Session 1526

MECHATRONICS/PROCESS CONTROL REMOTE LABORATORY

Hong Wong, Vikram Kapila, and Anthony Tzes

Department of Mechanical Engineering Polytechnic University, Brooklyn, NY

Abstract

Under an NSF—DUE sponsored laboratory development program, we have developed a multidisciplinary mechatronics/process control remote laboratory (MPCRL) consisting of an array of experiments, which expose students to elements of aerospace, mechanical, electrical, civil, and chemical engineering. A new laboratory curriculum and manual have been developed to introduce students to PC-based data acquisition, rapid control prototyping, and control of a multitude of multidisciplinary experimental test-beds. In addition, in summer 2000, we developed the MPCRL web site to facilitate remote access to our laboratory test-beds via the world-wide-web. The MPCRL web site features online-experiments, information/navigation/ resource centers, prerecorded videos of experiments, live video stream of online-experiments, and a chat window. The MPCRL supports undergraduate and graduate control courses including the capstone design projects. Finally, its outreach efforts have included summer workshops for graduate and high school students.

Introduction

Engineering education is facing unprecedented challenges and exciting opportunities. Advances in communication and information technology are reshaping our society in unparalleled ways. With the ever frequent reengineering and restructuring of corporate America, engineers are often working in disciplines that transcend their formal education. For example, many engineering graduates follow diverse career paths in medicine, financial engineering, management, public policy, and other fields that require a systems-oriented analysis and synthesis ability. In addition, the highly complex and multidisciplinary nature of modern engineering systems demand synergies between various engineering and science disciplines and a strong synthesizing approach. These dynamics point to the acute need for training engineering students in a multidisciplinary, cooperative, active-learning environment.

An integral part of modern engineering systems is the design of advanced control strategies, which require interplay across disciplinary boundaries, necessitating a thorough understanding of fundamentals of multiple engineering disciplines in order to analyze and

“Proceedings of the 2001 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition Copyright  2001, American Society for Engineering Education”

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Tzes, A., & Wong, H., & Kapila, V. (2001, June), Mechatronics/Process Control Remote Laboratory Paper presented at 2001 Annual Conference, Albuquerque, New Mexico. 10.18260/1-2--9544