Course syllabus
Course-PM
SSY156 Modelling and control of mechatronic systems lp3 VT24 (7.5 hp)
The course is offered by the Department of Electrical Engineering
Upcoming Deadlines:
Kick-off meeting on Monday the 15th at 9 am (Room: HC3)
Contact details
- Lecturer: Emmanuel Dean, Department of Electrical Engineering
- E-mail: deane@chalmers.se
- Tutoring: On appointment
- Course administrator/Teaching Assistant: Gabriel Arslan Waltersson
- E-mail: gabwal@chalmers.se
- Tutoring: On appointment
- Responsibilities:
- PSS sessions
- Contact person for laboratories
- Lab supervision
- Teaching Assistant: Attila Lischka
- E-mail: lischka@chalmers.se
- Tutoring: On appointment
- Responsibilities:
- Contact person for homework
Student Representatives
TBD
Course purpose
The course goal is to give a theoretical framework for modeling and controlling the motion of mechatronic systems and their interaction with the environment. In particular, the course focuses on robotic manipulators (arms) that perform tasks with their end-effectors.
Schedule
Course literature
Text Book:
Robotics: Modelling, Planning and Control by Siciliano, Sciavicco, Villani, and Oriolo
Non-mandatory texts:
Robot Modeling and Control: Mark W. Spong, Seth Hutchinson, M. Vidyasagar
Course design
The main learning activities include lectures, problem-solving sessions (PSS), and lab supervision sessions. A “course week” typically consists of two lectures, two problem-solving sessions (PSS), and one lab supervision. Please see the calendar and Time-Edit for a more concrete schedule of the course's learning activities and their location.
Lectures provide theoretical knowledge and are guided by the lecture slides. The slides can be used as learning material and a compass for navigating the course textbook. The slides are uploaded on Canvas before the lecture. The theory can be further supported with the use of additional, non-mandatory texts. Lectures are accompanied by problem-solving sessions where additional, practical, and computer examples are shown, and the students can use the acquired theoretical knowledge from the lectures. The exercises solved during problem-solving sessions are also uploaded on Canvas. During the lab supervision, the students can pose individual questions to the teaching assistants regarding lab assignments or other questions relevant to the course content.
The course examination is based on group homework and lab assignments that run in parallel with the course on topics that have previously been covered during the lectures and problem-solving sessions. An examination in the form of a digital test is also provided at the end of the course. This exam is optional and gives additional points that can help increase the students’ final grades.
Attendance is not mandatory but the students are encouraged to attend the learning activities to expedite and enhance learning. The statistics demonstrate that students attending the lectures have better final grades. Therefore, it is important to attend the lectures.
The learning platform used by the course is the Canvas learning management software. All lectures are posted on Canvas, the day before the lecture. The students need to upload their assignments on Canvas and also use Canvas to evaluate the homework of other groups. Both Canvas and e-mail can be used to reach the teachers.
Since the evaluation of the course is based on assignments and homework that build on each other and not on a summative exam, the due dates for submitting your solutions are strict and final.
Learning objectives and syllabus
Learning objectives:
- Learning how to formulate kinematic models describing the position and orientation of complex multi-body systems within the operational space
- Learning how to derive differential kinematic models and use them to solve kinematic control problems for multi-body systems.
- Learning how to apply the Euler-Lagrange method to multi-body systems to derive mathematical models describing their motion and understanding the properties of the derived models
- Understanding basic non-linear control design concepts and how to apply them to achieve motion control of multi-body mechatronic systems.
- Learning model-based motion control frameworks to control the motion of multi-body systems.
Link to the syllabus on Studieportalen.
Examination form
Examination form
The course examination is based on the following:
- Three individual lab assignments, each containing the following tasks:
- Mandatory Tasks: Modeling and solving several motion and interaction control tasks using a simulated robotic system. The system consists of four actuated joints and is programmable in Simulink.
- Optional Tasks: Solving several optional Kinematics tasks on a simulated KUKA manipulator. The system consists of seven actuated joints and is programmable in Simulink. These tasks provide additional points for the final grade.
- Four group homework
- In the first course week 1, the students are assigned to groups (3 students per group)
- Weeks 4, 5, 7: Mandatory Homework 1, 2, and 3. Each group must solve a given problem on the topics: Homogeneous Transformations, Kinematics and Differential Kinematics, and Dynamics and Control. The solution should be uploaded as a PDF file to Canvas before the specified due date to accumulate points for the final grade. The uploaded solution of HW3 will be evaluated by another random group on week 9 (HW4). Therefore, the uploaded solution should not have the authors' names, just the solutions. Since HW1, 2, and 3 are mandatory, you will have the chance to upload them until the end of the course. However, their corresponding points will not be awarded if they are not submitted on their specific deadlines.
- Weeks 9: Optional Homework 4 (Peer-review activity). The students will revise the solution submitted by a random group. The students will grade the problem they got, motivating the suggested grade with a short report. (More details on how you recommend grades for other groups will be given in the classroom). The report should be uploaded to Canvas as a PDF file (without the authors' names) before the specified due date to accumulate points.
- Final individual digital test. Accessible for three days during the exam week (09/03, 10/03, and 11/03). The exam will have a time limit. Therefore, the student should reserve four hours for running the test.
Compulsory examination components:
- The mandatory part of Lab Assignments.
- Group Homework 1, 2, and 3.
Optional examination component:
- Group Homework 4.
- The optional tasks of Lab assignments.
- Final digital test.
Grading
Optional lab assignments are worth 15 points in total.
Homework is worth 17 points in total. HW1 (3 points), HW2 (5 points), HW3 (6 points), and HW4 (optional 3 points). Only the homework submitted within the deadline will be awarded the corresponding points. Furthermore, since HW4 depends on HW3, if HW3 is not submitted on time, you won't be able to participate in HW4 and have access to the optional points.
The optional final test is worth 8 points.
Grades are decided based on the total awarded points (Optional Lab assignments + homework + final digital test) according to the following scale:
- 8 points --> 3
- 18 points --> 4
- 28 points --> 5
Note that the maximum grade (5) can be achieved even without the final digital test.
Changes made since the last occasion
These are the new changes:
- Excluded Proximal convention in D-H
Course summary:
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