Laboratory Assignments
Some of the problems in the laboratory assignments come from Prof. Trumper's archive of problems and solutions (PDF – 10.1MB).
The class will use LabVIEW—based control electronics, and it will be best if you have a running version of LabVIEW 2013 installed on Windows on your own laptop. We do not assume prior experience with LabVIEW, but you will need to learn it during the course. MIT students borrow an NI myRIO unit during the course.
| WEEK # | TOPICS | LAB FILES |
|---|---|---|
| 1–2 | Lab 0: Controls Review; Introduction to LabVIEW programming on the myRIO | |
| 2–3 | Lab 1: Real-time Control; Using the myRIO with LabVIEW to implement closed-loop control of an RC filter | |
| 3–5 | Lab 2: Analog Feedback Systems | |
| 5–6 | Lab 3: Electronic Scale | |
| 7–9 | Lab 4: AC-Driven and Demodulated Electronic Scale | Lab 4 (PDF) |
| 9–11 | Lab 5: Brushless Motor Control | Lab 5 (PDF) |
Schedule
We will occasionally use the scheduled lab sessions, but you will mostly work in the lab on a self-scheduled basis. If you are a registered student in the class, your MIT card key should give you access to the lab. This freedom to use the facility also entails the responsibility to take good care of it. Please be sure the lab is locked when you leave it. Do not let others into the lab; registered students should be able to get in with their own MIT ID. Please let us know if something is wrong with any of the equipment, and be careful to leave the lab benches and equipment ready for the next person to use. When you leave, please be sure equipment other than the computers is powered off.
Pre-labs
A pre-lab will be assigned in the week preceding the lab exercise. The pre-lab will help you to get prepared and make calculations and design choices for the laboratories. The pre-lab may also contain homework-like problems. The pre-lab is generally due in class one week after the lab assignment goes out. Late pre-labs will not be accepted. Please turn in a copy of your work to us, retaining the original, as you will generally need the pre-lab material for your lab experiments. Attach the original of your pre-lab to the back of the lab report, to be turned in at the lab check-off.
Lab Reports
Your lab report is due at a scheduled check-off with one of the teaching staff. This check-off consists of a 30 minute interview in which we will ask you to demonstrate your working lab experiments. Check-offs will be scheduled about a week in advance. Please come to the lab well in advance of your check-off to be sure that you have a properly functioning lab setup in order to be able to demonstrate your system, and make good use of the 30 minute time window. Lab check-offs will not generally be rescheduled other than in the event of an emergency or illness. Late lab reports will not be accepted.