MFGT 386

Instructor: Nick Repanich
Class times: Lecture & Lab M 2:00 - 6:50 PM
Final Exam Date & Time:    Monday, May 17, 2004, 2:00 - 3:50 PM
Office Hour: M 1:00 PM (in the lab), by appointment
Classroom: OCNL 431
E-mail: nrepanich@csuchico.edu
Phone: 899-2645

Textbook:

None, though the books from ECE 31 & PHYS 002A&B will be a good reference. Industry catalogs/CD's/web content will be used to provide information about components used in automation systems.

Course Description:

This course will combine and apply machine automation concepts used in manufacturing such as I/O control, PID loops, ac and dc motor control, motion control, electrical circuits, fundamental mechanics, control systems and programming.  The class has an economic overlay in that all applications consider the ramifications of implementing varying levels of automation sophistication in a business.  Labs are not recipe-type activities.  They demand the student simulate the actions a product line manager might take in considering automation of a machine or process, and then complete a proof-of-concept system to verify those decisions.

Required Prerequisites:

ECE 31, MFGT 156

Grading:

Application #1          25%
Application #2          30%
Mid-term Exam #1    5%
Mid-term Exam #2     5%
Applications #3          30%
Final Exam                 5%

Overall grades on the applications will be 2/3 based on the degree that the application is completed in the time allotted, 1/6 on homework, and 1/6 on the lab notes.

Homework:

Since this is a more project/lab-oriented course, there are reading assignments to prepare for lectures, but limited homework to be turned in except some motor sizing problems. There will be plenty of out-of-class work you will need to do with your lab partner to accomplish each application.

Safety:

Everyone in Plumas 121 must wear eye protection and closed-toed shoes at all times except in the area between the entrance door and the yellow limit lines painted on the floor. Anyone failing to comply with all lab safety rules will be told to leave the lab immediately and not be allowed to return to the lab that day. Repeated offenses will result in failing the course.

The Department's Lab Safety Policies and Procedures are available to read on the department web site.  There is also a form to print and sign.  You will be required to bring this signed form to class prior to participating in any lab activities.  Safety glasses are available in the Department office.  They will be required when the high-pressure air system is in use in 121A, even though it is not within the yellow lines.

Lab Notebooks:

All applications will adhere to the following procedure:

1. Ask questions of the "customer" (instructor)
2. Select commercially-available components
3. Present an economic justification and payback period for the machine
4. Project the resources and costs needed to finish the application
5. Wire
6. Program
7. Attach mechanics, if possible
8. Test
9. Analyze results and give a "proof-of-concept" presentation

Spiral bound quadrille lab notebooks should be kept to document all work on the applications, and will be collected for review after each application. Before starting your notes, write page numbers (in ink) on the right-hand page on at least half the pages in the notebook, and include a Table of Contents.  Date and initial each entry and be neat, but not obsessive!  Notebooks will be evaluated on chronological completeness.  Please take lecture notes and do homework separately so that my collection of your lab notebook does not hinder you in the next application.

Exams:

The Mid-term exams will be in-class. The final exam will be take-home and given out a week before the exam is due. Exam time will be used to, review the answers and discuss any other industry issues you may face.

Week # (approximate)
1-4         Application #1

Each two-person group will meet with a "customer" to gather the technical details of a simple application. As you ask questions, constraints arise that lead to a system that may include sensors, electric or pneumatic actuators, a PLC, and an operator interface. You will make a brief verbal proposal. Upon acceptance, you receive the equipment needed to do a proof-of-concept. Your and your partner must wire it and demonstrate the application.

5        Closed-Loop PID control is added to Application #1.

Week # (approximate)
6-8         Application #2 - Machine load/unload conveyor system

Students learn the properties of dc motors, ac motors, and learn how to apply Variable Frequency Drives.  Motors are connected to conveyors and controlled by a PLC.

Week # (approximate)
9         Motor Sizing

Students learn how to properly size motors without software. You solve fundamental sizing problems and learn how to combine axes to solve multi-axis mechanical systems.

10-13        Application #3 - Open-Loop Step Motor Control

As you solve the application, you are presented with either application changes or problems. These changes allow you to discover different properties and options available with steppers, including:

Lectures:

Lectures have been developed to address specific technical and economic issues students will face in industry. Interaction between the instructor and students is encouraged and expected. Lectures are scattered throughout the semester, as they become needed. The lectures are, in no particular order: