Development of a teaching laboratory for undergraduate control systems teaching

There are many systems in our daily lives that utilise feedback controllers. However, the importance of these controllers is often overlooked as they are hidden or embedded within the systems that they aim to control. Examples and applications include the numerous feedback loops employed in electrical, mechanical and chemical systems and also those present in nature, such as the circadian cycle. Considering the wide array of exciting control engineering problems, it is surprising that there is an apparent lack of engaging and illustrative experiments that could be used in laboratories that support the teaching of control systems. This paper summarises an undergraduate final year group project which aimed to develop a series of laboratory experiments to support the teaching of control systems at the University of Manchester.