Control systems

Control systems can be found all around you, from the thermostat which controls the temperature in your room to the latest autonomously driving cars. In this second year module you will work on designing and creating such a control system yourself. 

To create such a control system, you first need mathematics and physics to describe how your system works. You will be offered lessons on this. You will also learn a new programming language (Python) that allows you to predict how well your control system will perform. 

You will learn about what is needed to keep a system stable. For example, about how the cruise control ensures that the speed of your car remains constant. Or how to ensure a constant supply of liquids in a factory. 

The best part is that you can apply all this acquired knowledge in a self-designed control system, which you will also build and test. For example, a group of students built a platform on which a ball could roll around in all kinds of patterns that were programmed on their computer. Or another group made an automatic seesaw on which a ball always returned to the same position.