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Development of a Universal Controller for Pedagogical Applications Involving Data Acquisition, Data Logging and Control

Nicholas Krouglicof Union College, Mechanical Engineering Department

Abstract This paper describes the development of a novel, low cost, microcontroller-based system that enables students to interface a variety of sensors and actuators to their laptop computers in a laboratory or studio classroom environment. The system could potentially find application throughout the engineering curriculum at Union College beginning with the freshman Introduction to Engineering course, a required course for engineering students in all majors. At the junior and senior levels it is designed to support laboratories in Dynamics of Systems and Mechatronics Design. Finally, as a stand-alone controller, it could potentially be applied to numerous mechatronic student projects including the International Virtual Design Studio (IVDS), the Robotics Club, the SAE Walking Machine Challenge as well as several capstone design projects each year.

The system is both technologically and pedagogically innovative. In terms of pedagogy, in provides a new avenue of application for laptop computers in the undergraduate curriculum. In terms of technological innovation, the system is unique in that it functions as a data acquisition system, stand-alone controller or data logger. It incorporates both a user programmable microcontroller and a user configurable Complex Programmable Logic Device (CPLD). The microcontroller supports high-level programming languages such as C and Basic as well as low- level assembly language. Finally, in terms of design philosophy, the system is based on an open architecture (i.e. all the firmware, source code and development tools are available to the student at no cost).

Introduction Laptop computers are becoming increasingly “pervasive” in undergraduate engineering programs throughout the United States. 1 For example, under the IBM ThinkPad University program, freshmen are provided with the latest laptop computers and software at a substantially reduced cost. The possible pedagogical applications for these computers in the undergraduate engineering classroom are relatively obvious; word processing, spread sheets, Computer-Aided Design (CAD) packages, presentation software, mathematical utilities such as MATLAB, etc. In a laboratory environment, however, there are many impediments to the use of laptops as data acquisition systems or as real-time controllers. Most of the commercially available data acquisition hardware is designed for desktop computers (ISA or PCI bus) and cannot be readily interfaced to a laptop. Products that interface to the host computer via the USB port or by means of a PCMCIA cards can be used with laptops, however, the cost is prohibitive – on the order of $1000.00 per system – and they offer only limited functionality. After a fairly exhaustive, unsuccessful search for a low-cost data acquisition package specifically for laptop computers, the decision was made to develop UC2 (Union College Universal Controller) a system tailored to the needs of engineering students at Union College.

Proceedings of the 2002 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition Copyright ã 2002, American Society for Engineering Education

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Krouglicof, N. (2002, June), Development Of A Universal Controller For Pedagogical Applications Involving Data Acquisition, Data Logging, And Control Paper presented at 2002 Annual Conference, Montreal, Canada. 10.18260/1-2--11222