Virtual Systems Library

This website has links to a variety of virtual and remotely-accessible dynamic systems that can be simulated and/or controlled. The virtual systems are models of actual systems available in the System Dynamics and Controls Laboratories at the University of Texas - Pan American (UTPA) or the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA). They incorporate animations of simulated responses. The remotely-accessible systems are actual bench-top dynamic control systems at UTPA or UTSA that can be accessed and controlled through this website. They include data acquisition and video feedback. This Virtual Lab is a collaboration of Dr. Javier A. Kypuros of UTPA and Dr. Thomas J. Connolly of UTSA and has been funded in part by the National Science Foundation through grant number DUE-0311349.

Virtual Dynamic Systems

Motorcycle suspension: Curb Response
Animate the response of a motorcycle driving over a curb.

Torsion Plant: First-Order Response
Animate the 1^st-order response of a rotating disk to various torque inputs including impulse, step, and ramp inputs.

Torsion Plant: Second-Order Response
Animate the 2^nd-order response of a rotating disk to various torque inputs including impulse, step, and ramp inputs, and specify the damping as undamped, underdamped, or over damped.

Torsion Plant: Higher-Order Response
Animate higher-order responses of a rotating disk system to various torque inputs including impulse, step, and ramp inputs, and specify the damping as undamped, underdamped, or over damped.

Simple Pendulum: Linear versus Nonlinear Model
Animate the responses predicted by the linearized and nonlinear models of a simple pendulum and compare to determine a reasonable range for which the linearized model produces accurate results

Virtual Control Systems

Torson Plant: Position and Speed Control
Expore PID type position and speed control of a One-Degree-of-Freedom (1DOF) torsion plant. Discover the basic differences of applying P, PD, and PI control to this basic 2^nd-order system.

Inverted Pendulum
Animate the position control response of an inverted pendulum for user specified initial conditions. Choose from Lead, PID, or State-Feedback controller designs and specify controller parameters.

Pendulum-Cart System
Animate the position control response of an inverted cart-pendulum for user specified initial conditions or a square-wave postion input. Specify State-Feedback controller parameters.

Ball and Beam
Animate the position control response of an inverted pendulum for user specified initial conditions. Choose from Lead, PID, or State-Feedback controller designs and specify controller parameters.