Designing a flexible industrial controls lab module

Electrical controls have become an important part of machine design even for the mechanical disciplines. The selection and integration of motors and motor controls may be taught as a module inside a machine design course when bolstered with appropriate laboratory exercises. This paper describes the development of such a module within a senior level Mechanical Engineering Technology machine design course. The module includes exercises to allow students to select components and estimate project costs using Internet sites. Manuals and application information for the module are downloaded from Internet web sites reducing the dependence on a text, and providing fresh and up to date information. The laboratory setup is relatively cost effective (less than $500 per workstation) and is portable to conserve lab space. The workstations may be used as a demonstration tool or as a laboratory for one to three students. Lab exercises may range from simple motor starter circuits to PLC´s and variable speed drives.