The Development and

Implementation of a Thermal
Process Trainer for Control
and Measurement via the
Internet
MILAN MATIJEVIĆ,1 MILADIN STEFANOVIĆ,2 VLADIMIR CVJETKOVIĆ,3 VLADIMIR JOKOVIĆ,1
NENAD BABAJIĆ,1 MIROSLAV RAVLIĆ,1 SNEZANA NESTIC2
1
Department for Automatic Control and Applied Mechanics, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Kragujevac,
Sestre Janjic 6, 34 000 Kragujevac, Serbia
2
Department for Production and Industrial Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Kragujevac, Sestre Janjic 6,
34 000 Kragujevac, Serbia
3
Faculty of Science, Institute for Physics and Informatics, Kragujevac, Radoja Domanovic´a 12, 34 000 Kragujevac, Serbia

Received 3 December 2010; accepted 25 March 2011

ABSTRACT: In engineering education, it is very important to provide solid knowledge and practice to stu-
dents in order to deal with architectures, mechanisms, and algorithms for the control of processes. In this
article we will present the concept, detailed technical requirements, description, implementation, and verifica-
tion of a process (thermal) trainer. In addition three possible educational tasks will be presented with a devel-
oped software infrastructure for the remote control of a laboratory set-up via the Internet. ß 2011 Wiley
Periodicals, Inc. Comput Appl Eng Educ 22:167–177, 2014; View this article online at wileyonlinelibrary.com/
journal/cae; DOI 10.1002/cae.20543

Keywords: process trainer; web laboratory

INTRODUCTION their remote control in order to provide a web-based industrial

process control laboratory [1–4]. The Internet provides great
Education in many different engineering fields demands labora- potential for the high-level control of process plants, so in many
tory work in order to provide practical knowledge and skills to cases the knowledge and experience gained through process
students and to demonstrate different real life processes. It is trainers (remotely controlled via the Internet) could be easily
important to provide solid knowledge and skills to engineering implemented into real life problems [5].
students (especially in the field of industrial engineering, proc- Due to the need for quality training of engineers there is a
ess engineering, and control engineering) to deal with architec- need for the construction of a process simulator or laboratory
tures, mechanisms, and algorithms for the control of specific model with different educational roles. Of course there are a
industrial processes. Many laboratories have specific process number of commercially available process trainers [6,7]. On the
trainers for training in the field of process and control engineer- one hand, the main goal of this article is to present the design
ing. Other laboratories use different process trainers enabling and implementation of a process trainer (temperature process
with time delay) with similar performances as commercially
amiable models, but cheaper and with some additional specific
Correspondence to M. Stefanović ([email protected]). features. On the other hand, the complete development
ß 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. documentation as well as a developed model (and its

167
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168 MATIJEVIĆ ET AL.

implementation in an educational process) provides opportuni-

ties for the improvement of teaching and learning for process
and control engineering.
In this article we will present the design and implementa-
tion of a process trainer which should provide:

Support for learning and training in the field of process

control to technicians [8], process operators, and control
engineers.

Practical training for students at all levels.

The trainer should demonstrate closed and open loop con-

tinuous control, two-step control, as well as other features for
the demonstration of different control approaches. In this article
we will present the concept of the technical system, detailed
technical requirements as well as a description and the verifica- Figure 1 Laboratory model PT 400.
tion of the system. In order to demonstrate usability of such a
system, three possible educational tasks will be presented.
Additionally, it is important to provide the opportunity to There are a large number of producers of similar process
control the laboratory training system (process trainer) via the trainers. The most common are Feedback Instruments Limited
Internet in order to provide the remote control of an experiment with models PT326 and Process Control Trainer 37-100 [7] as
and the remote acquisition of results. Providing the opportunity well as Quanser Consulting, Inc. with model HFE (Heat Flow
for distant control of this laboratory equipment makes this setup Experiment) [6]. A specification of technical requests has been
part of a web laboratory environment. Remote web-based developed according to the performances of similar devices, but
laboratories may also allow students, trainees, and even with the important addition of some specific requests: the
researchers, in different locations, to carry out researches and possibility of fast and simple changes of the control unit, and
design work co-operatively and remotely at the same time. the simultaneous implementation of temperature sensors with
Besides, web laboratories with remote control of experiments different characteristics. According to the above mentioned, the
could be used as a very useful educational tool in classical or following functional schema has been developed (Fig. 2), and
blended (mixture of classical and e-learning approaches) learn- the device has been named PT 400.
ing environments. Model PT 400 consists of the following four components
(Fig. 2):

Blower, power supply, heater, and thermosensors.

DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION OF
Air heaters at the tunnel entrance.
LABORATORY MODEL PT 400
Blowers for air transportation through tunnel.

Four pairs of thermosensors evenly distributed into two
Concept of the Technical System
rows inside the tunnel.
The general concept for this technical system is its flexibility
and a much lower price compared to referential devices with The power delivered to the heater is controlled using an
similar performances. Besides the technical model, a software analog signal. The blower speed can also be controlled using an
solution has been developed for supervision and control and it analog signal.
is part of the complete training system. The developed model
allows manual and automatic control using PLC (Programmable
Logical Controllers), a microcontroller system, and a personal
Technical Requirements for the PT 400 System
computer with an accompanied A/D and D/A interface. It is
possible to perform testing and experiments with different hard- Laboratory model PT 400 is a device that in a technical sense
ware and software platforms as well as testing of different con- enables:
trol algorithms. The laboratory model enables the testing of the
effects of different sensorial groups at the same moment. It is (1) Changes of temperature in the limits of the desired
very important to introduce the practical realization of theoreti- range (from 30 to 908C) in a previously defined way, in
cal models, as well as safe work on real systems to students. the conditions of variable airflow and other external
This is a way to introduce engineering practice to students disturbances of airflow.
showing them the functions of real systems. (2) The heater and blowers influence on the change of air
In order to describe the right identification of a system, temperature which flows through PT 400. Actuators
having in mind real systems, it is necessary to develop a model (heaters and blowers) are controlled by an input (con-
that will present the dynamic characteristic of a real system in trol) voltage signal in a range of 0–5 V, which could be
a working regime. Using the developed models, different introduced in different ways: manually using a potenti-
aspects of the systems’ behavior could be demonstrated. ometer and by using a computer and an appropriate AD/
For educational purposes laboratory model PT 400 DA interface (such as NI USB 6008 for example), PLC,
(Fig. 1) has been developed in order to simulate controlled ther- etc. Their role is to control the change of temperature
modynamical processes. and the speed of airflow in the tunnel. The control value
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THERMAL PROCESS TRAINER 169

Figure 2 Functional schema of PT 400.

is an air temperature in the tunnel, and the change of the touching of the heater and blower. Besides, consid-
speed of the airflow has the role of disturbance. The ering of the possibility of side touching of the blower,
selection of the actuator should enable a range of protective grid has been placed on the front side. Protec-
temperature in the tunnel of between 30 and 908C, with tion from the overheating of the cover is performed by
a transient process time of no longer than 24 s, and the placement of a safety thermostat which in the case
induced signal in the range of 0–5 V because of the of overheating disconnects the system from the electric
compatibility with the output of standard DA interfaces. power network.
The blower has also been excited with a standard elec- (5) Software support for PT 400. For laboratory model PT
tric signal of 0–5 V, and a nominal input of 4 V should 400 and accompanied hardware it is necessary to
ensure a flow of 0.91 m3/min. develop software that will enable control of the model
(3) Measurement of the air temperature using sensors with via the Internet in order to develop a supervision and
different characteristics placed at different distances control system based on Internet infrastructure.
from the heater inside the tube of laboratory model PT
400. Sensors have the task to provide information about
the air temperature which flows through the tunnel. In
the tunnel of laboratory model PT 400, eight thermosen- Description of Model PT 400
sors are placed in pairs, at different distances from the
heater. This is a way to demonstrate the static and Based on the functional scheme depicted in Figure 2, it is
dynamic characteristics of different types of sensors (or defined that M1 is the current-to-voltage converter with func-
the same, with or without socket, with different heat tion to convert the data gathered from specific sensors into volt-
capacity, etc.) and their impact on the system. Reason age suitable for processing with an A/D converter. The level of
for placing sensors at different distances from the heat- these signals is 0–5 V, supplied through a rectifier unit with a
ers is to demonstrate pure time delay on the system. Tr1 transformator (5 V) (Fig. 3).
Sensors are selected for the measurement of temperature M2 is the power amplifier for the actuators—the blowers
within a range of 0–1008C, with a transient process time and heaters. In order to enable digital control, change of voltage
of 4 s with a maximal flow of air in the tube and sensi- using a D/A device, pulse width modulation (PWM) is used
tivity of 0.05 V/8C. (Fig. 4).
(4) Precondition of safety usage. It is important to provide Considering that change of the actuators’ polarities is not
general safety requirements of the functioning of labora- mandatory (direction of blower rotation), the output amplifier
tory model. Firstly, prevention of electric shock. Sec- stage is done as a single stage instead of the full N-bridge.
ondly, concerning the nature of the process, a thermal Basic parameters in defining the experimental device were
process, it is necessary to provide protection from burns defined. It is set that the dimensions of the working space (tun-
and the model itself from overheating and possible fires. nel) are 120 mm  120 mm  1,500 mm. Based on that vol-
In order to provide protection from voltage, the device ume, it is calculated that:
is grounded, and galvanically separated for network and
high voltage, from other elements of the model. The V ¼ 120  103  120  103  1; 500  103
(1)
cover of the tunnel also has a protective role to prevent V ¼ 0:0216 m3
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170 MATIJEVIĆ ET AL.

Figure 3 Functional scheme of the supplying of the M1 converter.

On the diagram of the moist air: is in the range of 0–5 V. The threshold of sensitivity that the
blower must overcome to run is about 2 V and then it can
Dh ¼ h50=0:1 h20=0:2 ¼ 70:138:7 ¼ kJ
31:4 kg
(2) manage the speed of rotation (and thus can be changed, includ-
rV ¼ 1:1 mkg3 ing the airflow) by reducing or increasing the voltage.
The heater is made of wire with the power of 400 W. The
Which leads to mass:
wire diameter is 1.1 mm. The heater is made of wire tied to the
mV ¼ rV V ¼ 0:02376 kg (3) vertical columns of the heaters made of pertinax. The connec-
tion is made by connecting terminals which are connected to a
Energy required to change temperature from 20 to 508C is voltage of 24 V. At the top of the heater, the side from which
h2 ¼ mV Dh ¼ 0:02376  31:4 ¼ 746 J (4) the blower blows air, there is a safety thermostat which serves
as an overheating protection device. The range of effects can be
Based on the calculated value, the time for reaching the from 50 to 858C.
required temperature at t maximum heater power is obtained as: On the upper side, in the tunnel, eight stands for sensors
are set. Ports are made from a standard 9-pin to DB9 connector,
h2 746 J
t¼ ¼ ¼ 1:865 s (5) in order to enable the easy and quick change of sensors.
P 400 Js
The two types of sensors can be compared. One type of
sensor is the LM335. The basic characteristics of LM335
So, with this calculation the heaters’ difference in a
sensors are:
temperature of 308C is achieved in approximately 2 s which is
quite enough and meets the required demands.
Directly calibrated in Kelvin degrees.
In addition, the blower needs to meet the following air-
Initial accuracy of 18C.
flow:
Operating range of 400 mA to 5 mA.
V 0:0216 m3 m3 m3
Dynamic impedance of less than 1 V.
Q¼ ¼ ¼ 0:011582 ¼ 0:69492

t 1:865 s s min Easy calibration.

Low price.
m3
¼ 41:7 (6)
Working in a wide temperature range from 55 to 1508C.
h
The blower is connected to a power supply of 12 V. It is However, a drawback is relatively large inertia because of
situated at the entrance to the tunnel. The blower power is the slightly bigger housing, so it is suitable for the analysis of a
3.7 W. The dimensions are 120 mm  120 mm  38 mm slow process.
(built as a finished product (SUNON KD1212PTB1-6A) and Thermistor PT 100 is used as a temperature sensor for fast
features the blower pre-determined as the starting value). The processes. PT 100 belongs to the group of so-called resistance
flow that the blower can provide is 2.55 m3/min at maximum temperature detection (RDT).
voltage, which completely meets the requirements set forth by Producers give dependence of resistance of temperature
Equation (6). The blower is excited by the input voltage, which and it is necessary to have dependence of voltage of

Figure 4 Functional scheme of PWM regulator.

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THERMAL PROCESS TRAINER 171

temperature. In this type of sensor resistance is defined with the against touching voltages, the device is grounded and a galvanic
Callendar–Van Dusen equation for a temperature in the range isolation has been made between the networks, high voltage,
of 0–8008C: and the other elements of the model.
  The cover of the tunnel is also a measure of protection
Rt ðTÞ ¼ Rð0Þ 1 þ A T þ B T 2 (7)
against accidental contact of the heater and blower. In addition,


a safety net from the entrance side has been set preventing the
Rt is the resistance of the sensor on the temperature T, possibility of side touching of the blower.

R(0) is the resistance on 8C, Protection against overheating of the housing is performed

Coefficients A and B are typical for platinum RDT, which by placing a safety thermostat that disconnects, in case of over-
has the temperature resistance a ¼ 0.00385 V/8C, and heating, the entire device from the electric power network.
o A ¼ 3.9803  103, 08C1 The overall technical characteristics of a process trainer
o B ¼ 5.775  107, 08C1 are presented in Table 1.

Since coefficients A and B are small, it could be approxi-

mated that changes of resistance are practically linear in Verification of PT 400’s Characteristics
relation to temperature changes. For the laboratory model it is The responses of the temperature in the tunnel of the laboratory
much more convenient to measure the voltage on sensors than model, an example of the setting of a desired response by
the resistance. tuning to Dahiln’s PID algorithm (Fig. 5).
The desired equation can be developed using Ohm’s law, Dynamics of the response obtained by the prototype is
but it is a much better approach to perform calibration, measur- quite comparable to commercial laboratory models [6,7].
ing temperature, and voltage. Knowing that the resistance and
voltage are linearly dependent from the temperature, it is
enough to measure the values approximately with a first range POSSIBLE EDUCATIONAL TASK
function or linear equation. Using a large number of repeated
measurements and after the application of the method of least The possible project task which could be performed with
squares, the following equation describes the performance of laboratory model PT 400 covers a number of engineering
the sensors: courses such as measurement and control, modeling, and identi-
T ¼ uð29:114Þ þ 139:165ð CÞ (8) fication. The possible educational tasks that could be set are as
follows:
The cover tunnel is made of poly(methyl methacrylate)
(PMMA). The housing for the electronics is made of a metal (1) Testing of static and dynamic characteristics of sensors
sheet with a thickness of 1.2 mm. and actuators.
The side of the housing contains an opening command (2) Modeling and identification of a process.
panel. It carries a total of 10 connectors of which two are inputs (3) Control algorithm synthesis, verification of the effective-
(for heater and blower control) and 8 are outputs (for output ness of simulation and experiment.
signals of sensors). In addition there is an on/off switch and
four fuses. In order to prevent overheating inside the device
two coolers have been built in.
In order to provide more flexible functioning of the model, Testing of the Static and Dynamic Characteristics of
a multiplexer with an integrated power amplifier has been Sensors and Actuators
developed. Basically for this model only the multiplexer could The blower is excited with an input signal of (0–5) V. The air-
be used, but during the implementation of the model we flow in the pipe/tunnel can be measured by an anemometer
decided to develop a universal integrated power amplifier as an (available MS6250 Digital Anemometer). The heater is excited
independent device or separate component. The results of with an input signal of (0–5) V, where the airflow in the tun-
implemented algorithm on the different devices can be com- nels/tubes can be set by the input voltage of the blower (three
pared relatively quick and easily, and laboratory equipment values are sufficient to demonstrate the procedure, for an exper-
once assembled could stay in that form for a longer period iment take 1.5, 3, and 4.5 V). The heater temperature can be
of time providing different software manipulation for an measured on an available non-contact infrared thermometer
experiment.
Model IPS 2M4SA/3 is a power transducer and electronic
switch that enables a usage of one of three outputs. The power Table 1 Technical Characteristics of the Laboratory Model PT 400
amplifier has the purpose to convert control signals from the
Parameter Value Units
control unit in appropriate voltages for the actuators drive. The
input from the multiplexer is connected to PT 400, and the Voltage of power supply of device 220 V, AC
outputs are connected to specific control units. Max power of heater 400 W
The control units are sub-assemblies through which the Max power of blowers 3.7 W
implementation of the control algorithm can be performed. This Max number of rotation of blowers 3,100 8/min
may be a PC with an appropriate interface for the AD and DA Number of sensors 8
conversion (e.g., USB NI6008, NI6229, etc.), a PLC controller, Voltage of sensors’ power supply 5 V
a microcontroller development board, and the like. Calibration of temperature sensors 100 K/V
A cross-section of the tunnel 0.0144 m2
As already stated in the project specification, PT 400 has
Dimensions of the model 150  275  1,500 mm
to satisfy rigid safety requirements. To implement protection
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172 MATIJEVIĆ ET AL.

Figure 5 Responses of laboratory model in Figure 1 with a PID controller tuned Dahlin’s algorithm and Ziegler–
Nichols tuning.

(ST-8855 IR TC thermometer). Heater power is 400 W. The this response (settling time, the dominant time constant,
range of effects can range from 50 to 858C. Possible tasks/ and so on).
questions are: o The response to sinusoidal signal changes in the air
temperature in the tube (e.g., entrance to the blower is

Record the static characteristics of the heater (the exci- 3 V; the heater power is changed by changing the volt-
tation voltage input and the output temperature of the age from 0 to 5 V, that is, u(t) ¼ 2.5–2.5 cos(vt)).
heater, with respect of airflow). Display static kku 3D dia- Also, the input signal u(t) ¼ 2.5–2.5 cos(vt) changes
gram (input: excitation voltage of the heater and airflow frequency v in order to identify the frequency band-
in the pipe (excitation voltage blower), output: heater width of the subsystem for measuring the temperature
temperature). with different temperature sensors. In addition, the fre-

Is there hysteresis? quency/filter characteristics of the sensor are demon-

Evaluate the settling time (parameter of dynamic charac- strated and explained.
teristics) at different points in the static characteristics
(present in a table form: point static characteristics, the
Modeling and Identification of the Process
measured/estimated settling time).
The main task is to present a mathematical model of the
Eight sensors are located in the tunnel/connected with a thermodynamic process of heating the air in the tunnel. In this
9-pin connector for the enclosure, where the eight signals presentation there are the following assumptions:
(0–5) V are available for measurement (and thus enables the
recording of temperature signals from all eight sensors). Four
The nominal airflow in the pipe is defined by the entrance
sensors L335 are set in a series and linked by 9-pin connectors blower of 3 V (deviation from these values can be treated
for the housing, which according to the manufacturer have a as a disorder).
coefficient of calibration 100 K/W. Besides them, the same dis-
The input in the process is an input signal of (0–5) V
tance from the heater, sensors of other characteristics are for the PT 400 housing that affects the power of the
usually set. Also available is a MS6503 digital thermometer heater.
and an ST-8855 IR TC thermometer. Tasks are:
The exit of the process is a temperature signal of (0–5) V
on the arbitrarily selected sensor in the pipe.

Perform calibration of all sensors (or all types of sensors)
It is a slow process of a typical first-order delay.
in the tunnel; record the static characteristics of sensors in
terms of the diagram: the temperature at a given point— Perform parametric identification of a mathematical model
an appropriate voltage signal to the PT 400 housing. of the process:

Compare the dynamic characteristics of sensors. For avail-
able sensors compare:
Perform appropriate experiments.
o The response to STEP signal (e.g., entrance on the
If necessary, propose a new structure model or stick with
blower is 3 V. The power of the heater change by the proposed.
change in voltage from 3 to 4 V) and the parameters of
Perform parametric identification.
the dynamic features that can be read on the basis of
Verify the validity of the obtained model.
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THERMAL PROCESS TRAINER 173

Control Algorithm Synthesis, Verification of the INTERNET-BASED REMOTE CONTROL AND

Effectiveness of Simulation and Experiment MEASUREMENT
Perform synthesis and experimental verification of efficiency of
In order to provide open access to a wider range of users, and
ON–OFF (with hysteresis), of P, PI, PID controller in a system
to be cost-effective, control of the laboratory device is enabled
with a closed loop. In this task there are firstly three assump-
via the Internet. In order to provide remote control of the model
tions as on the previous task.
the links between the device and the control server, local and
Experimental verification carried out in the following
remote computers/servers should be supported by an appropri-
terms:
ate software solution. Generally there are two different


approaches in the development of web laboratories and support
Reference signal r(t) is 0 V for the first 10 s, then V for
for remotely controlled experiments concerning programming
the next 60 s, 4 V for the next 60 s, and finally 2 V for
languages:
the next 30 s.

The disturbance signal is set by software as an additive
for the link between the device and control server (dedi-
(effects of disturbance on a controlled variable) on the
cated proprietary software such as: MatLab with Simu-
signal outputs. The signal d(t) is 0 V for the first 40 s,
link, LabVIEW; a developed solution based on different
then 1 V for the next 60 s, and then again 0 V.
programming languages mainly C#, Java), and

for the link between local and remote computers (dedi-
For control algorithms (choose the parameters of these cated proprietary software such as: Matlab and Simulink,
algorithms, with an understanding of the reasons for this LabVIEW, front panels as virtual instruments, or a differ-
choice in accordance with the procedures of their ‘‘calcu- ent variation of dynamic solutions based on HTML—
lations’’) conduct experimental tests where the recorded Hypertext Markup Language, XML—Extensible Markup
signals are: the reference signal r(t), the effect of disturbances Language, ASPX—Active Server Page Extended, PHP—
on the signal output of the system d(t), output signal y(t), con- Hypertext Preprocessor, Java Applets, Visual Basic,
trol signal u(t), signal that affects the operation of the blower VRML—Virtual Reality Markup Language).
in (t).
For the most successful algorithm of the above, repeat the All approaches have their advantages and disadvantages,
experimental tests: but in this article we have selected an approach based on Lab-
VIEW. There are many examples of usage of LabVIEW for the

For different values of the signals that influence the venti- support of remote laboratory experiments [9–13]. The usage of
lation v(t); LabVIEW provides useful tools (LabVIEW Remote Panels,

For the sinusoidal signal change that affects the operation Web Publishing Tools), it is easy to learn, has single software
of the blower in (t) ¼ 2.5–2.5 cos(vt) with changing fre- (language) for a complete solution; and is well suited to control
quency v. setup and collect data. On the other hand LabVIEW is mostly
used to conduct experimental sets using data acquisition (DAQ)
A student needs to describe for which frequency signal cards, this limits the number of experiments connected to the
disturbance v(t) the impact on output of the system is the server computer [10,14,15] and Virtual Instruments (VI) in Lab-
largest and for which the smallest. Students also need to VIEW could become large files [16].
answer: whether it can be connected to the frequency band- Anyway, this concept of WebLab consists of three parts:
width of the system with a closed loop; what is the frequency
bandwidth and how it can change the control algorithm (1) Theoretical basis—which presents the basic concepts
synthesis, and what are the effects from the standpoint of for monitoring and understanding of a proper exercise.
tracking the reference trajectory, eliminating the effects of (2) Simulation model—to help students prepare for the sim-
disturbance on the output variable, suppression of noise in pler practical part of the exercise, it is possible to get
the system, suppressing the effects of parametric disorder. familiar with the expected behavior of the system
Finally, they have to comment a simulation and experimental through simulation.
results. (3) Execution of the experiment—after students master
From the standpoint of achieving better performances of previous two steps—enables them to practically run the
the system with a closed loop, students need to: experiment.

Define the desired system’s performance. Structure of Web Lab—one of the implemented concepts

Give the procedure of synthesis of an arbitrary control of the use of laboratory resources via the Internet—is presented
algorithm (fuzzy algorithms, algorithms based on neural in Figure 6.
networks and any other). As a container for the realization of the experiment via the

Provide verification of the efficiency of the proposed con- Internet DotNetNuke version 5.3.2001 was selected. DotNet-
trol algorithm by simulation and verification on the exper- Nuke is an open source platform based on Microsoft. NET
imental model. technology and has built in additional modules for authorization
and authentication. It is also possible to easily develop modules
These three tasks are examples of potential usage of the in programming languages C#, .NET, and VB.NET.
training equipment for students’ training and education in DotNetNuke is a portal with collaborative CMS (Content
different fields (process engineering, thermodynamics, control Management System) functionality. As such, it is a good choice
engineering, etc.). for the portal solution, because it combines, on the one hand,
 10990542, 2014, 1, Downloaded from https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cae.20543 by UAEH - Universidad Autonoma del Estado de Hidalgo, Wiley Online Library on [12/12/2024]. See the Terms and Conditions (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/terms-and-conditions) on Wiley Online Library for rules of use; OA articles are governed by the applicable Creative Commons License
174 MATIJEVIĆ ET AL.

Figure 6 Structure of Web Lab—one of the implemented concepts of the use of laboratory resources via the
Internet.

easy maintenance and modification of copyrighted content, and Two instruments with vertical slider bars are used to man-
on the other hand offers the possibility of creating special-pur- ually adjust the blower speed and temperature of the heater.
pose modules, in this case modules that use functionality Simu- The value in the ‘‘Select (ms)’’ specifies the time interval
link models through the MSA. between two consecutive measurements of the temperature with
MSP (Matlab Server Pages) is a complex system that sup- the PT 400 in milliseconds, while the value of the field
ports three-tier architecture (web-business environment-data- ‘‘Duration (S)’’ determines the duration of measurement in sec-
base). It belongs to a group of so-called open-source solutions onds. After completion of the measurement results are saved in
and has proved itself as an acceptable replacement for commer- a file which is selected using the control marked ‘‘data file.’’
cially available Matlab add-ins for a web server (Fig. 6). The appearance of the corresponding block diagram of a virtual
An alternative way for online operation—remotely, over instrument for PT 400 is presented in Figure 8.
the web, with the PT 400 system is using LabVIEW software Once developed, desktop applications, with a few simple
(product of the company National Instruments) that allows adjustments of the LabVIEW environment could be activated as
rapid development of applications for measurement and control a LabVIEW embedded web server. So access to the developed
using an intuitive graphical language G. virtual instrument via the web and using a web browser could
LabVIEW directly supports a large amount of acqui- be allowed. Previously, the additional software LabVIEW Run
sition—measurement hardware via the library NiDAQ Mx, Time Engine (that can be downloaded from the site of National
which could also still be used with various types of software Instruments at: http://joule.ni.com/nidu/cds/view/p/id/861/lang/
such as Matlab, MS Visual Basic, and C#, C, Cþþ. en) must be installed on the client computer from which users
LabVIEW software is based on the so-called Virtual access the laboratory trainer. The general structure of the Web
Instruments (VI) that have a form with elements of a graphical Lab, shown in Figure 6, remains similar in using the LabVIEW
user interface (GUI) by which it controls the experiment. software, with the difference, being that the web server in this
The form with elements has been associated with a Func- case is installed on the same computer on which the measure-
tional Block Diagram (FBD) representing the program in the ment system operates with the experiment. Using the additional
language G (consists of features that could be used to imple- web server installed on a different or the same computer, it is
ment the required functionality of the virtual instrument). Func- possible to implement scalable system experiments with web
tion block diagrams are linked with connections which are access where some experiments could simply be added to the
called wires and represent the flow of data and they must com- existing structure of web experiments by connecting a new PC
ply with the type of inputs and outputs of functional blocks that with a web server. The general structure of the scalable struc-
connect. The development of desktop applications using Lab- ture of a Web Lab is presented in Figure 9.
VIEW software can be relatively quick, depending on the com- The role of the main web server in Figure 9 is to provide
plexity and demands of the application that is developed. There user access to the system of various experiments. Each server
is no faster and more elegant way to develop measurement/con- in the network of servers in Figure 9 is linked to an experiment,
trol applications than is possible using LabVIEW. directly or through an appropriate data acquisition server. The
When the virtual instrument starts, the form of virtual data acquisition server is a computer using an appropriate inter-
instrument has the look as in Figure 7. face (usually card system); it enables the acquisition, manage-
Each of the eight diagrams in Figure 7 shows the change ment of an experiment over a computer network and it is
of temperature at one of the eight temperature transducers of connected to a local web server or the main web server. In the
the PT 400. The PT 400 has temperature transducers with a case when LabVIEW software is used, the web and data acqui-
positive and a negative temperature coefficient, where the sition server could be on the same computer. If some other
downward and upward curves of temperature change in the technology is used, then the data acquisition server could be
panels. connected directly to the main server Web Lab system. Also,
 10990542, 2014, 1, Downloaded from https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cae.20543 by UAEH - Universidad Autonoma del Estado de Hidalgo, Wiley Online Library on [12/12/2024]. See the Terms and Conditions (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/terms-and-conditions) on Wiley Online Library for rules of use; OA articles are governed by the applicable Creative Commons License
THERMAL PROCESS TRAINER 175

Figure 7 Virtual instrument in the execution phase.

some experiments may have their own dedicated local web implementation of a laboratory setup for engineering training.
server in the network that is developed to specific requirements. The model has successfully met its primary function, which is
to provide faster and more flexible ways of analyzing a thermo-
process with a time delay.
CONCLUSION In this article we presented the design and implementation
of a laboratory trainer. The detailed requirements were defined
In education for different engineering fields it is very important starting from technical characteristics, followed by a precondi-
to provide quality knowledge and skills in the field of process tion of safety usage and software support. Part of the specifica-
control. In this article we have presented the development and tion was developed according to the performances of similar

Figure 8 Block diagram of a virtual instrument for the PT 400.

 10990542, 2014, 1, Downloaded from https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cae.20543 by UAEH - Universidad Autonoma del Estado de Hidalgo, Wiley Online Library on [12/12/2024]. See the Terms and Conditions (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/terms-and-conditions) on Wiley Online Library for rules of use; OA articles are governed by the applicable Creative Commons License
176 MATIJEVIĆ ET AL.

Figure 9 General structures of a Web Lab system.

devices; in addition this model has a few specific features: the environments with controlled temperatures (different
possibility of fast and simple change of the control unit (which industrial driers, etc.).
enables the usage of PLC, PC, microcontrollers), and the simul- (3) It could be used for the demonstration of different con-
taneous implementation of temperature sensors with different trol approaches. The trainer could demonstrate closed
characteristics (which allows the comparison of different sen- and open loop continuous control as well as disturbance.
sors, and the testing of effects of the different sensorial groups Students could perform system identification on the heat
at the same moment). All functional schemes as well as the flow experiment and design a controller in the frequency
technical characteristics of the laboratory model PT 400 are domain to control the air temperature at selected points
provided. The verification of the laboratory model was tested in a duct using a heating element and a blower. In
by the measurement of responses of the laboratory model in addition students could design a simple PI control sys-
Figure 1 with a PID controller tuned to Dahlin’s algorithm and tem to control the air temperature at selected points for
Ziegler–Nichols tuning. In order to demonstrate usability of the lower courses or to develop more complex controllers
model in practical engineering training three possible edu- for advanced course.
cational tasks we have suggested three possible educational (4) In addition this model could be very useful for training
tasks: for different software solutions. In this case we used
LabVIEW and its libraries, which could also be used
(1) Testing of static and dynamic characteristics of sensors with various types of software such as Matlab, MS Vis-
and actuators. ual Basic, and C#, C, Cþþ.
(2) Modeling and identification of process.
(3) Control algorithm synthesis, verification of the effective- A solution for the remote control of a laboratory setup,
ness of simulation and experiment. based on LabVIEW, has been presented. The WebLab concept
has significantly expanded capabilities of the training in many
This laboratory trainer could be used for training and different fields. Different remote users can perform experiments
learning in different engineering fields and for different on a single setup, results can be easily downloaded, and the
purposes: procedure can be repeated irrespective of the time of usage or
the location of users.
(1) The process of the construction, design, selection of the Finally, the results obtained in this research can be practi-
components and assembly process could provide an cally applied in a micro-environment, such as in cars or buses,
illustrative example for students in many different in complex housing units, as well as in factory plants where it
courses (construction, sensors and actuators, and is necessary for strictly controlled conditions of heating such as
electronics as well). Furthermore, the blueprint for the in the use of a dryer.
design of this laboratory setup will be given to student
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BIOGRAPHIES

M. Matijevic received his PhD from Depart- V. Joković received his BSc (5 years, former
ment of Automatic Control, Faculty of Mechan- Diploma) degree from School of Electrical
ical Engineering University of Kragujevac, Engineering in Belgrade in 2006. He is a PhD
Serbia. He is currently an associate professor in student in Faculty of Mechanical Engineering,
Department of Automatic Control and Applied University of Kragujevac. Currently he works at
Mechanics. His current research interest Inovatec Systems Corporation as a project man-
includes digital control, computer added ager. He is interested in robotics, human inter-
measurement and control. face devices and algorithms, and supporting
information systems.

M. Stefanovic received his PhD from Depart- N. Babajić received his BSc (5 years, former
ment of Production and Industrial Engineering, Diploma) degree from Mechanical Engineering
Faculty of Mechanical Engineering University from the Faculty of Military and Technical Sci-
of Kragujevac, Serbia. He is currently an assist- ences in Zagreb. He is a PhD student in Faculty
ant professor in Department of Industrial of Mechanical Engineering, University of Kragu-
Engineering. His current research interest jevac. His research interests are in the area of
includes web services, information systems, and robotics and informatics support for data acqui-
CIM systems. He is a member of International sition, measurement and control, web
Federation for Information Processing—Coun- laboratories.
cil TC3—Education.
M. Ravlić received his BSc degree from Mili-
tary Technical Faculty in Zagreb in 1989, and
V. Cvijetkovic received his PhD in Faculty of MSc degree from Electrotechnical Faculty from
Science University of Kragujevac, Serbia. He is Belgrade in 1993. He is a PhD student in Faculty
employed at Faculty of Science, Department of of Mechanical Engineering, University of Kragu-
Physics as assistant professor. He teaches sub- jevac. Currently he works at Prizma Kragujevac
jects in informatics for the students of physics: as a designer of electronics. He is interested
object oriented programming, information sys- in embedded systems and automated test
tems, web programming, data acquisition, expert equipment.
systems. His scientific interest and field of
research includes informatics support for S. Nestic is a PhD student in Faculty of Mechan-
physics, expert systems for spectra analysis, data ical Engineering, University of Kragujevac. She
acquisition, measurement and control, web laboratories. is currently an associate a Center for Integrated
Manufacturing. Her scientific interest and field
of research includes computer integrated
manufacturing.