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The digital signal processor (DSP) is a tool that has become available for control engineers in recent years. Proportional -integral -derivative (PID) control loops have been standard tools for decades. Combining these two tools provides a flexible and powerful demonstration of control system concepts for undergraduate mechanical engineering students.Undergraduate controls courses have traditionally focused on mathematical analysis, including transfer functions, block diagram manipulation, root locus, frequency response (Bode plots), etc. In recent years a number of computer simulation packages have been developed for control system design. However, there is a continuing need to develop prototype systems to enhance the students' conceptual understanding of difficult materials.The control system described in this paper uses a custom fabricated circuit board built around the Texas Instruments TMS320F243 digital signal processor with all necessary signal conditioning. The DSP control system is accessed through a custom LabVIEWÔ program interface, so students do not need to know any details of the DSP system operation. PID control gains and the sampling time are entered by the student and sent to the DSP through this interface. The DSP system also returns measured output information for plotting and offline analysis. A ball-screw driven by a small DC motor provides a prototype mechanical system. Some details of the linear actuator system, the PID control algorithm, and its implementation on the DSP are provided.

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