Establishment of an experimental-computational framework for promoting Project-based learning for vibrations and controls education

A curriculum enhancement project of embedding MATLAB and Simulink to a mechanical engineering (ME) vibrations and controls course is presented in this paper. MATLAB/Simulink is a popular software tool for vibration analysts and control designers, which is consistently regarded as one of the most in-demand technical skills that employers are looking for. In the past, the ME students at Mississippi State University (MSU) did not have the training opportunity to use MATLAB/Simulink for design and analysis of vibration and control systems. With the support of a teaching grants, the author created an experimental lab section to ask students to design and build vibration and control devices, and integrated these device into his vibrations and controls course. In this study, the author develops a computer lab section based on the implementation of MATLAB/Simulink, which complements with the experimental lab section to provide the students with a full lab experience. The experimental-computational lab allows the students to not only observe and characterize the dynamic response of vibration and control systems through experimental operations and measurements, but also validate experimental results and confirm experimental phenomena through computational analysis. As well as exploring dynamic behaviors of the systems in a variety of conditions through numerical simulations with different settings. An example of student project is presented to show an experimental-computational study conducted by a student team using MATLAB/Simulink software tool and self-developed data acquisition systems based on a base excitation model demonstrated in class. A questionnaire was conducted at the end of that class and results confirms that the implementation of MATLAB/Simulink into the course effectively develops the ME students' programming skills and strengthens their capacity in modeling, simulating, and analyzing vibration, control, and other dynamic systems. The developed computational lab and the current experimental lab complementarily promote student understanding of principles and concepts conveyed in classroom lectures.