This is a slightly informed guess at what I expect to be doing lecture by lecture in the 415.773 course this year. It isn't a guarantee, but it worked reasonably well last year. Of course, this year I'll change the material - I particularly want to mess things up around lectures 13 to 15, because I have something new and ( I think ) illuminating to talk about, but we'll sort that out when we come to it.
Not every heading will necessarily be covered, so don't panic if you seem to have missed something. The course is defined by the material distributed in lectures. Check what's been distributed in the list of documents to see whether you have them all; ask me if you've missed any, or just pick up the pdf file.
LECTURE 1 : 9th March.
About the course.
LECTURE 2 : 10th March.
What is real-time computing ?
Significance of real-time.
Wirth's levels of complexity.
Importance of time.
Can it be encapsulated ?
Example ( 1132 )
What is computer control ?
Sorts :
continuous, sequencing ( on-off ).
open loop, closed loop.
Why better than older ways ?
What's special about real-time control ?
LECTURE 3 : 12th March.
Sensors and effectors.
( Continuous control - )
Open-loop.
Closed-loop.
Basic ideas; time lags, frequency dependence.
Feedback and Control theory.
Transfer function; how the computer controls things.
Digital control : sampling, Z-transform, quantised values.
LECTURE 4 : 16th March.
PID controllers.
Proportional control.
Integral and derivative control.
Neural networks.
Fuzzy systems.
Analogue systems. ( DDA )
LECTURE 5 : 17th March.
Example : three tanks.
LECTURE 6 : 19th March.
( Sequencing - )
Matrix sequencer.
PLCs.
Ladder diagrams.
Extensions to more than logic.
Example : compressor.
LECTURE 7 : 23rd March.
Hierarchical systems.
Uses.
Library, development systems.
Planning, scheduling, CIM.
Monitoring.
Supervisory control.
Higher order control systems.
Optimal control.
Feedback ( feedforward ).
Adaptive control.
"Intelligent" control.
Communications.
Map.
LECTURE 8 : 24th March.
Growth.
Automation.
Cost, volume, flexibility.
Integration of many machines.
Types.
Rigid.
Flexible.
Programmable ( job shop ).
NC machine tools.
Development.
LECTURE 9 : 26th March.
Performance.
Programming.
APT.
G-codes.
Flexible manufacturing systems.
Tools.
NC.
Robot workcells.
Materials handling.
Transport.
Storage. ( JIT )
Computer control.
Scheduling.
Group technology.
LECTURE 10 : 30th March.
Interface.
Mental model = real machinery.
Ergonomics, human factors.
Representation.
Small scale.
Input : ( special ) keyboards, touch screens, menus, buttons.
Output : clear displays, sounds, acknowledge input, report faults.
Labview.
Large scale.
Control panel.
Mimic diagram.
Alarm signals.
Psychology.
Don't hide details.
Who's in charge ?
Keeping occupied.
Design.
Prototypes.
Formal methods.
LECTURE 11 : 31st March.
Scope.
Process and plant design.
Product design.
For easy manufacture,
Group technology.
Constructing a system.
Handbook "example".
LECTURE 12 : 2nd April.
Design techniques.
Safety.
Why not just top-down ?
Specification document.
Capacity management.
Testing.
Difficulties.
Simulation.
Open loop testing.
Error detection.
LECTURE 13 : 6th April.
Approaches.
What do we want ?
Optimal schedule.
Feasible schedule.
Guaranteed schedule.
Cyclic executive.
Theory for special cases.
Different sorts of task.
Periodic and demand functions.
Essential and desirable functions.
Making best use of time available.
Operating systems.
Use the ordinary one ?
Do without ?
LECTURE 14 : 7th April.
Spring kernel.
Chaos.
Rate-monotonic scheduling.
LECTURE 15 : 9th April.
Desirable features.
Why ASM, C, C++, .... ?
Different approaches.
Familiarity.
Real-time Fortran.
Purdue Fortran.
Ada.
Efficiency.
Coral.
RTL/2.
Ease of programming.
Iliad.
Pearl.
Safety.
Real-time Euclid.
LECTURE 16 : 20th April.
Self-indulgence.
PFL : Ease of programming, multithreading, interface.
PDL : Robustness; distributed system; accessible information.
Implementation.
Compiler.
Interpreter.
Portability.
Artificial intelligence.
Fault handling.
Computing faults.
Fault tolerance.
Process faults.
Types.
Detection.
Treatment.
LECTURE 17 : 21st April.
Classification.
Form.
Function.
Adaptability.
"Generations".
Components.
Effectors.
Actuators.
Sensors.
Computers.
Uses.
Social consequences.
LECTURE 18 : 23rd April.
Special features.
General-purpose machine.
Programmable.
Space.
Kinematic chain.
Denavit-Hartenburg.
Control problems.
Forward kinematics.
Inverse kinematics.
Multiple solutions.
No solution.
Workspaces.
LECTURE 19 : 27th April.
Trajectories.
Dynamics.
Position control.
Force control.
World view.
Sensors.
Non-contact.
Vision.
Ambient light.
Structured light.
Sound.
LECTURE 20 : 28th April.
Contact.
Touch.
Force.
Compliance.
Methods.
Off-line programming.
Teaching.
LECTURE 21 : 30th April.
Languages.
Level.
Actuator level.
Joint level.
Manipulator level.
Task level.
Object level.
Critique.
Programming is impossible ?
Subsumption.
Intelligent robots.
As many of the remaining lecture slots as we need are taken up by your seminars. If you inspect the course prescription carefully, you'll see that you are required to present a seminar as part of the "presentation". This is when you do it. We work out the order in the last lecture, or thereabouts, by random selection. ( Perhaps where it says "Programming is impossible ?" ? )
Alan Creak,
February, 1998.
Go to the 773 main course page;;
Go to me;
Go to Computer Science.