Educational Device FlexyAir in Teaching of Process Control

This paper describes the use of the laboratory device FlexyAir for purposes of control education. FlexyAir is extension to Flexy2. The device is a complex dynamical system, that contains one actuator, the computer fan. This fan then drives air into the tube, where a plastic floater is then lifted from the bottom position. An infrared proximity sensor then measures the position, which constitutes a measured and controlled process variable. It comes with two knobs, that are fully configurable. FlexyAir is designed to directly support practical learning in courses focused on automatic control and programming. As the Flexy2, it comes with a Matlab/Simulink interface using which students can easily implement and test their own control strategies.