This project develops a contemporary microprocessor learning laboratory that uses sophisticated software tools. This project provides software development tools, single-board 32-bit computers for embedded applications, an embedded operating system, and servo trainers. The software development tools provide a full-feature C++ compiler, a sophisticated debugger, and a real-time operating system kernel. These software tools can be used with laboratory test platforms that the department has designed over the years. The servo trainers are the test beds for the fuzzy logic control algorithms. These platforms can be set up to simulate a broad class of commonly occurring non-ideal properties for control problems. The laboratory experiments provide the students with interesting challenges for fuzzy logic control. Approximately one-fourth of the class time will be spent on real-time fuzzy logic control. Universities have been slow to implement software automation tools in microprocessor courses. Industry has moved very aggressively in this direction, making the university training less relevant. Industry, particularly in Japan, has also been very quick to implement fuzzy logic algorithms in many products while universities have lagged in the implementation of fuzzy logic control in curriculums. Embedded computers provide options for control that are not available using classical control theory, and fuzzy logic provides the formal set of rules for implementing these systems. Fuzzy logic instruction makes sense in an engineering technology program since very sophisticated control algorithms can be implemented with a limited mathematical background. *
