IEN-411, Applied Control Systems Design

2001 Catalog Data: IEN-411, Applied Control Systems Design

Credits:  (3-2-4)

Course Description: An introductory course designed to introduce students to the various computer controlled systems used for data collection, analysis and reporting. Various hardware, software, sensors, and human resources required to implement effective control systems will be studied. Students will be engaged in hands-on laboratory exercises requiring them to configure, write programs to solve various assigned problems through individual and/or group efforts. In additions students will be given assignments to be completed outside of class. By the end of the course the students should have good understanding effective use of computerized control system.

Prerequisites: Senior I standing

Corequisites:  None

Textbook: (To be determined)

References:  (To be determined)

Course Learning Objectives: Upon completion of this course, the students will:

• Gain enough knowledge to understand the key components required to design a control system to solve given sets of problems (IE PEO 3).
• Demonstrate how to configure a control system hardware to solve given problems (IE PEO 3).
• Demonstrate how to program a control system to solve given problems taking into consideration safety and human machine interface issues (IE PEOs 2, 4).
• Solve several control system related problems given as projects that will require team work (IE PEO 4).
• Demonstrate how to collect data from a control system, analyze and report the results in a systematic and useful way (IE PEO 4).
• Demonstrate how to interface a control system with spreadsheets and databases to transport from and to control system (IE PEO 3).

Prerequisites by Topics:  Basic knowledge of a computer system.

Topics Covered:

• History of computerized control systems.

• Numbering systems, Boolean algebra and logic gates.

• Hardware, software, input, output, power and associated control system components.

• Human machine interface design.

• Safety requirements for the design of a control system.

• Programming techniques such as ladder logic and modern programming languages.

• Input/contacts, outputs/coils, timers, counters, arithmetic functions, numeric comparison functions, and data move systems.

• Data collection, distribution and analysis using spreadsheets, databases, and programming languages.

• Design, document, and report methodologies.

Class Schedule:  180 minutes per week

Computer Usage:  Popular software packages and hardware used in industry will be adopted.

Laboratory Projects:  120 minutes of laboratory per week

Relationship to Professional Component:  Engineering Design:  One credit hour and Engineering Science:  Three credit hours

Prepared by: Petros Gheresus                                                                               Date: August 4, 2000