Current Classes
Past Classes
- Fall 2008: Dynamics (ENGR 3340)
- Fall 2008: Systems (ENGR 3710)
- Controls (Spring '06) This course explores the techniques for changing the dynamics of a system using feedback control. The first portion of the course covers methods for analyzing the open-loop dynamics of generic systems in the frequency-domain (transfer functions) and time-domain (statespace equations). Then we will develop feedback techniques for shaping the system response. Students completing this course will have the analytical tools for controller design (both classical and modern) as well as a fundamental understanding of the concepts behind feedback control (stability, performance, controllability, observability, etc.). Students will have ample opportunity to experiment with control design by implementing their own designs in analog and digital hardware. Examples from field robotics, aircraft, and intelligent- structures will be used for both in-class and hands-on demonstrations.
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Systems (Engr 3710) - http://ece.olin.edu/systems/
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Dynamics (Engr 3340) -http://ece.olin.edu/dynamics/www/
This course contains the analytical and conceptual tools for understanding how mechanical, electrical, and electromechanical systems undergo changes in state. To analyze such systems we will apply both momentum and variational principles to derive the equations of motion. Hands-on demonstrations will illustrate the concepts behind these fundamental tools, and students will work on real-world examples from robotics, vehicle systems, spacecraft, and intelligent-structures. Building on the ability to derive the equations of motion for rigid bodies, we extend the analysis to lumped parameter and continuous systems. This course will deliver generic tools for characterizing linear and non-linear system behavior in the time and frequency domains. The hands-on component of the course will explore the fundamental concepts of system dynamics: system modes (eigenvalues and vectors), spectrum analysis, and time response.