Implementação de um sistema via internet para experiências à distância de malhas de controle

Abstract

This work has as goal to implement a simple and efficient system that enables to make experiments in control loops from afar using data communications resources, like the Internet. The proposal consists in the accomplishment of practical experiments from afar using didactic sets of continuous processes control systems. The purpose is to enable the execution of real experiments of control systems in a remote way such as processes of level, outflow, position, temperature, etc. With the increasing availability of resources and the cost reduction of information technology, it is very promising and feasible using a data communication network to interconnect control systems to personal microcomputers, aiming the accomplishment of practical experiments and the visualization of the data obtained in a remote way. The proposed system also incorporates a digital camera (webcam) which allows the visual observation of the experiments accomplished remotely. The advantage of the system is that a single laboratory set can be shared from afar by several users regardless of their physical locations. In other words, the users do not need to be physically in the laboratory to carry out the experiments, being able to use microcomputers that are connected in other rooms of the institution or even externally. As a result, it is not necessary to have several identical kits for the accomplishment of the laboratory experiments. It enables the cost reduction in the acquisition of equipment for teaching laboratories. And even the optimization of the utilization of the rooms destined to the laboratories. Resources client/server of data communication web environments, programming language oriented will be used in the accomplishment of this work. One or more didactic systems, in a reduced scale, will be used to exemplify the controlled processes. The interfaces with the instruments of the processes will be accomplished through data acquisition systems of low cost. The algorithms of classical control like PID (Proportional-integral-derivative) will be implemented by software. ix Experiments with a didactic system of level were carried out and the results that were gotten were promising. The system proved itself to be of simple utilization and to operate effectively. The considered system is being currently implemented in practically all the process (outflow, pressure, temperature and position) of the Laboratory of Control of Industrial Continuous Processes of the Federal University of Itajubá.