Faculty Center

Featured Professor

Thomas J. Connolly, Ph.D.
The University of Texas at San Antonio
Department of Mechanical
Engineering and Biomechanics
UTSA Faculty Link


Students in the System Dynamics and Controls laboratory course use Simulink to perform simulations of control system dynamics.

After taking four tutorials to understand the basics of Simulink, students work in groups of two on simulation-based design problems to:

• Determine control system parameters
• Evaluate the effects of different types of controllers for a given system
• Perform simulations of dynamic systems while varying more than one plant or control system parameter, etc.

For example, one student group modeled a system that controls the distance between vehicles on a proposed highway on which an auto-pilot drives the car. The students confirmed that the system met specified performance characteristics by determining critical values for plant and control system parameters.

I have found that the application of Simulink in this setting has reinforced students understanding of system dynamics and control systems. They have also expanded their understanding of control system design by using Simulink as a visualization and design tool.

MATLAB and Simulink, while able to handle complex problems, have the flexibility to enable educators to solve a wide range of simple and intermediate-level engineering problems.

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