The Ball and Beam module is ideal to introduce various control concepts related to unstable closed-loop systems. You can use it to demonstrate real-world control challenges such as aircraft roll control. The Ball and Beam module attaches to the Rotary Servo Base Unit.
Ball and Beam
The Ball and Beam module consists of a steel rod in parallel with a nickel-chromium, wire-wound resistor forming the track on which the metal ball is free to roll. The track is effectively a potentiometer, outputting a voltage that’s proportional to the position of the ball.
When coupled to the Rotary Servo Base Unit, the tilt angle of the beam can be controlled by changing the servo gear angle. The Ball and Beam module can be operated in stand-alone mode, and the ball position can be controlled via the user interface.
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QUBE – Servo 2 myRIO
The experiment is reconfigurable for various aerospace systems, from 1 DOF and 2 DOF helicopter to half-quadrotor. Integrating Quanser-developed QFLEX 2 computing interface technology, the Quanser AERO also offers flexibility in lab configurations, using a PC, or microcontrollers, such as NI myRIO, Arduino and Raspberry Pi. With the comprehensive course materials included, you can build a state-of-the-art teaching lab for your mechatronics or control courses, engage students in various design and capstone projects, and validate your research concepts on a high-quality, robust, and precise platform.
Gyro/Stable Platform
The module consists of a rotating disk mounted inside a frame. The disk is actuated about its center through a DC motor. An internal frame holds the rotating disk and is attached to an external frame through two shafts at both ends. A gear mechanism is connected between one of these end shafts and an encoder measures the angle of the blue frame as it rotates about the shafts, i.e., it measures the disc tilt angle. The Rotary Servo Base Unit is mounted on a 2-plate structure and is free to rotate. This allows the gyroscope structure to be manually rotated relative to a fixed surface in order to simulate external disturbance to the gyroscope system.
Rotary Double Inverted Pendulum
The Double Inverted Pendulum module is composed of a rotary arm that attaches to the Rotary Servo Base Unit, a short 7-inch bottom blue rod, an encoder hinge, and the top 12-inch blue rod. The balance control computes a voltage based on the angle measurements from the encoders. This control voltage signal is amplified and applied to the Servo motor. The rotary arm moves accordingly to balance the two links and the process repeats itself.
Rotary Inverted Pendulum
Students can use this module to learn practical problem-solving skills for mechanical and aerospace engineering. A classic application context for the design challenge is the two-wheeled Segway self-balancing electric vehicle.
2 DOF Robot
The 2 DOF Robot module is connected to two Rotary Servo Base Units, which are mounted at a fixed distance. Two servomotors on the Rotary Servo Base Units are mounted at a fixed distance and control a 4-bar linkage system: two powered arms coupled through two non-powered arms. The system is planar and has two actuated and three unactuated revolute joints.
The goal of the 2 DOF Robot experiment is to manipulate the X-Y position of a four-bar linkage end effector. Such a system is similar to the kinematic problems encountered in the control of other parallel mechanisms that have singularities.
Rotary Servo Base Unit
The Rotary Servo Base Unit is a geared servo-mechanism system. The plant consists of a DC motor in a solid aluminum frame. This DC motor drives the smaller pinion gear through an internal gear box. The pinion gear is fixed to a larger middle gear that rotates on the load shaft. The position of the load shaft can be measured using a high resolution optical encoder or a potentiometer. The encoder is also used to estimate the speed of the motor.
Rotary Flexible Joint
The Rotary Flexible Joint module consists of a free arm attached to two identical springs. The springs are mounted to an aluminum chassis which is fastened to the Rotary Servo Base Unit load gear. The module attaches to a DC motor on the Servo Base Unit that rotates a beam mounted on a flexible joint. The Rotary Flexible Joint module is supplied with three distinct pairs of springs, each with varying stiffness. It comes with three base and three arm anchors for the springs, and allows to obtain a wide variety of joint stiffness. The module is also supplied with a variable arm load that can be mounted at three distinct anchor positions to change the length of the load.
QUBE – Servo 2 USB
Integrating Quanser-developed QFLEX 2 computing interface technology, QUBE-Servo 2 provides more flexibility in lab configurations, using a PC, or microcontrollers, such as NI myRIO, Arduino and Raspberry Pi. With the comprehensive course materials included, you can build a state-of-the-art undergraduate teaching lab for your mechatronics or control courses, and engage students in various design and capstone projects.
