An undergraduate laboratory for networked digital control systems

This work describes a senior-level laboratory/project course at the University of Maryland, College Park (USA), titled "networked and distributed control systems." The course is partially supported by an NSF research and curriculum development grant and brings together undergraduates from three engineering departments (electrical and computer, mechanical, and aerospace) with plans to include chemical, civil, and fire protection engineering. The course combines digital control with networks and information technology. The course goals are to introduce students to emerging areas in systems theory, including topics in networked and distributed control systems; to leverage instructor time and increase productivity in laboratory classes while keeping student teams small; and to minimize costs by using highly adaptable general-purpose equipment.