In 2019 more than 2.5 million industrial robots will be in operation worldwide, according to a forecast of the international federation of robotics. An industrial robot typically consists out of a control cabinet, a robot arm and a Human Machine Interface (HMI) Panel. To guarantee safe operation of the complete robot system, the different robot components and its interfaces need to be isolated to each other.

The training starts with an overview of an analog input module. Typical components and their voltage supply levels are shown. Next, possible power topologies like push-pull, flyback or flybuck with their advantages and disadvantages are discussed.

CNC routers use step and direction signals to control each stepper motors. In addition motor information (position, temperature, fault) gets transferred from stepper motors back to control unit. This must be done in star topology and a mix of proprietary interfaces. Simple open real-time Ethernet (SORTE) enables 4 µs cycle time on industrial Ethernet and replaces step/direction signal and motor feedback info into a single Ethernet cable that is also wired in line topology.

A common method to measure process parameters in plants is based on sound waves. This method is used in: level, flow and displacement field transmitters. It works based on measuring the time of flight (ToF) between when the pulse, generated by a piezo electric crystal, is sent and received back by the piezo. 

This training helps to understand relevant parameter of a 4-20mA analog input module, such as surge protection, handling miss-wiring, broken wire detection, isolation or protection of the module against over-current at power and signal inputs.

Analog outputs in industrial automation come in a variety of configurations that each must deliver strong precision while passing stringent EMI /EMC certification tests.  This session will address these systems and their challenges by explaining each configuration, and explaining example designs

The purpose of this module is to learn software development methodology and understand how to set up an Integrated Development Environment (IDE), to then import and export Code Composer Studio (CCS) projects, as well as critical debugging information to understand the memory usage and performance of the software on the processor.

The purpose of this course is to review basic electronic components and the electrical properties needed to interface sensors and actuators to a microcontroller. You will learn how to measure reactance of a capacitor and use your project to measure current and voltage. The electrical properties of the capacitor will help you design circuits that “filter” or remove noise from your robot.

This module serves as a brief introduction to the ARM Cortex-M microcontroller, assembly programming language and some debugging techniques. Understanding how the processor works is essential for the design of embedded systems, such as the one used in your robot.  

This module is an introduction to C, a general-purpose programming language, in addition to the concepts of compiling and debugging using the MSP432 and TI Code Composer Studio™.  Debugging skills are a valuable tool when developing complex systems involved with robotics.

The purpose of this module is to learn how to power your robot. To run the robot (motor and other systems) you will need batteries and a regulator to provide constant voltage.  Understanding the relationship between voltage current and power is an essential component of robot system design.

In this module, you will interface a line sensor (infra-red sensor) to the microcontroller and learn how to write software to initialize GPIO pins.  The line sensor is a simple and accurate sensor for solving robotic challenges.

This module will demonstrate how to use finite state machines as a central controller for the system.

The purpose of this module is to develop interface switches and an LED so the robot can effectively detect wall collisions. Many sensors and actuators deploy LEDs, so understanding how they operate will be important to building your robot.

In this module, you will learn the fundamentals of SysTick timers and pulse width modulators (PWM), including how to measure pulse times and period with a logic analyzer and amplitude with an oscilloscope. It is important to understand the concept of PWM as we will use it to adjust power to the motors.

This module provides an intro to how flash memory operates, including debugging techniques for real-time systems and how to generate periodic interrupts using SysTick. Minimally intrusive debugging is essential for real-time systems to evaluate performance while the system runs in real-life situations.

This module will show you how to display characters and provide real-time debugging on an LCD screen. An LCD on your robot provides a convenient way to observe what it is thinking.