Elektronisch meten en regelen ( IR-ETRO-11597 ) 2009 - 2010
Electronic Measurement and Control

A. TOUHAFI (email: )

Subject area work unit Electronics and Informatics

Programme Bachelor of Applied Sciences and Engineering

Faculty of Engineering

Advanced
6 study points in the 1st semester and 0 hours of study time

24 contacthours Lecture ( A. TOUHAFI )
24 contacthours Seminar, Exercises or Practicals ( A. TOUHAFI )
12 contacthours Independent or External Form of Study ( A. TOUHAFI )

Competences

The course introduces the basic concepts of electronics, via the analysis of generic measurement and control systems. Specifically the "design" aspects for such systems are highlighted.

Objectives:
To illustrate the general principles used in electronics by means of circuits with low complexity and in the context of "measurement and control"; to provide insight in the general structure of measurement and control systems; to highlight the basic rules for the design and assembly of measurement and control systems and their modules; to illustrate the feasibility of implementing a large variety of electronic functions by combining simple circuits and off the shelf modules; to suppress the reluctance to take up the design & implementation of simple electronic systems and the fear for failure of students in other disciplines than electronics. top

Previous knowledge

The course is targeting an audience of non-specialists in electronics, having a wide non-specialised background in electricity, the analysis of passive networks, physics and signal theory, which is normally covered at Bachelor level in any engineering program. One of the chapters requires notions of Laplace and Fourier transforms, and primarily their significance in signal theory (this latter knowledge can easily be acquired on the fly during the period in which the course is given). top

Content

The course gives an overview of the structure, the architecture and the components of generic measurement and control systems. The modules of such systems are covered with a varying degree of detail. For the modules that are usually not directly available, design aspects are described in some detail; for the modules that are available as off the shelf products emphasis is put on the specifications that should guide the selection. Control theory is not covered in this course, but is the subject of IR-CHIS 1142 (Chemical process control). Students following the course in the context of the civil construction programme do not have a follow up course on control theory, and hence they will only learn to identify the main problems that can arise in control systems, without gaining further insight in the solution methods.

Detailed content description:

1) Electronics - terminology, modern design and future evolution, covered in a descriptive way.

2) The most important modules of a measurement and control system:

2.1) Analog pre-processing

The operational amplifier is the only standard component that is used in this course. Pre-amplifiers are covered in some detail so that the student acquires insight an skills in analysis AND design.

- The ideal operational amplifier: basic circuits for amplifiers (unipolar amplifiers: inverting, non-inverting, buffer; differential amplifiers; properties and criteria for the selection of amplifier types in measurement applications; comparators: regenerative circuits, blockwave generator); the concept "feedback".

- The non-ideal operational amplifier: after having introduced the general principles of analog electronics based on the model of an ideal operational amplifier, some deviations from the ideal operation are described and specifications are analyzed. Emphasis is put on how to counteract the non-ideal behavior of operational amplifiers so that the global properties of the circuits remain unaffected by it.

- Isolation amplifiers: usage, properties, optical and electromagnetic isolation; linearity.

- Narrowing of the bandwidth in measurement systems: filters and lock-in amplifiers.

2.2) Analog-Digital Interfaces

- Data acquisition: structures of acquisition modules (sample and hold, multiplexer, DAC, ADC), choice of the sampling frequency and number of bits. Design based on the selection of appropriate components is the primary goal.

2.3) Electronics: background and formal models

This course part formalizes the main principles that were applied in the circuits presented in Section 2.1, and it contains an introduction on the principles of circuits for digital signal processing.

- Feedback and stability: the role and usefulness of feedback in electronic circuits, stability, gain and phase margins, converting electrical circuits to blockschemes used in control theory, the Bode stability criterion.

- Power supplies: general setup, types (switched versus continuous regulators). The option has been taken in this course not to analyze the circuits, but rather to focus on general operation principles and properties (specifications).

- Introduction to digital electronics: from physical (electrical) description to logical description. Combinatorial circuits, sequential circuits (e.g. memories, counters), electrical implementation of digital circuits, comparative analysis of different implementation technologies for integrated circuits.

2.4) Sensor types and specific pre-processing aspects (Currently still under construction)

- The main working principles of sensors for the measurement of different types of physical quantities are described and the interpretation of sensor specifications is discussed.

2.5) Measurement bus systems - standards

- An invited lecturer presents an overview of the standards and the properties of the most widely used bus systems.

2.6) Drivers and excitation systems

- For the steering of actuators and active sensor systems, a few signal generators are presented (e.g. VCO, sawtooth generator, blockwave generators) as well as power booster circuits.

2.7) Laboratory sessions:
(1) Introductory session to familiarize the student with the equipment and laboratory environment, an introduction to Labview; visit of the clean room, an overview of a CMOS design cycle and a glimpse on the activities in robotics and machine vision; (2)Applications of operational amplifiers in circuits; (3) Digital circuits; (4)Computer controlled measurement (e.g. thermostatic regulation); (5) Lock-in amplifiers.
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Study Material

- Laboratory book with exercises and expirement descriptions, practical information and component specifications.

- Elektronica, Power Point Illustraties - eerste herdruk - Augustus 2007 (mandatory acquisition of this book))

- Elektronica Deel 1 en Deel 2, Jan Cornelis, Dienst uitgaven VUB; These course books contain more information than the actual course content. They are intended for consultation, whenever the student wants to enlarge his/her background knowledge (optional acquisition of these two books, but strongly encouraged).

- The presentation material used during the course sessions

Complementary study material:
The reference works mentioned in each of the chapters of "Elektronica Deel 1 en Deel 2" top

Mode Assessment

Oral examination (2/3 of the total score). Two questions about the course: a main question and a supplementary one - usually in another domain than the main question; 5 minutes for the consultation of the course notes, followed by 25 minutes preparation time without consultation of the course notes to structure the answers to the questions; approximately 20 minutes of discussion with the teacher.

Examination of the laboratory work (1/3 of the total score). Exam on the practical knowledge and skills acquired during the laboratory sessions. top

Additional Information

The course is given in Dutch. The course material is mostly written in Dutch top