Development of teaching materials and curriculum for learning control theory in a practical way

2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 18K02949
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 09080:Science education-related
• Research Institution: Maizuru National College of Technology
• Principal Investigator: Kawata Masakatsu 舞鶴工業高等専門学校, その他部局等, 教授 (90311042)
• Project Period (FY): 2018-04-01 – 2023-03-31
• Keywords: 制御工学 / カリキュラム開発 / 教材開発 / Arduino / LEGO / MATLAB/Simulink

Outline of Final Research Achievements

In this study, we developed a rotary/arm-type LEGO inverted pendulum as a teaching material using Arduino and general-purpose motors and sensors instead of LEGO MINDSTORMS, which are no longer in production. However, LEGO parts were used to fabricate the main body, taking advantage of the fact that anyone can easily assemble it without special machining. We showed that these materials are suitable for learning PID control, modeling, modern control, and advanced control in a practical manner. The developed teaching materials and MATLAB/Simulink files are available on the web.

Free Research Field

制御工学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

「制御工学」は，数式を駆使して自由自在にモノを操ることを目的とした学問である．しかし，講義科目では，数式を追いかけることが主となってしまいがちである．本研究で開発した LEGO 倒立振子は，特殊な加工技術を必要とせずに誰でも簡単に製作することができ，MATLAB/Simulink により簡単に実験を行うことができる．また，コンパクトな構造でありながら比較的安価であるため，少人数で実際に動かしながら「制御工学」を学ぶことができる．このような学習スタイルを新たに展開していくことは，制御技術をますます浸透させるうえで，意義深いと考える．