MET IIB: Automation laboratory

The automation laboratory is a practical team exercise, supporting the Manufacturing Systems Engineering module. The module aims to provide the theoretical background and underpinning to the practical session. In the laboratory, students apply the principles of planning automation, CAM/CNC, programming logic controllers, robotics, sensors, pneumatics and mechatronics.

The exercise

The lab itself provides students with the opportunity to design and construct an automated manufacturing system and alerts them to the types of problems that arise. Specifically, students will :

• Design and build an automated manufacturing system
• Learn to programme state of the art industrial robots
• Manage a project and learn how to work as a team
• Apply new skills to solve organisational and technical problems

Student feedback

" It was good to be able to come up with our own solution to solve the manufacturing problem instead of being prescribed the manufacturing process and just programming it into the cell. "

" It was a very rewarding project … the open endedness of the project an how it was completed was challenging. "