A simple and economical system that allows one to obtain the characteristic "I-V" curve in solar cells is presented. It is a computer-controlled system suitable as an instrumentation project for students who are learning about photovoltaic systems. This system is based on the use of an "R-3R" ladder circuit as a variable…

Charging a capacitor with a photovoltaic module is an experiment which reveals a lot about the modules characteristics. It is customary to represent these characteristics with an equivalent circuit whose elements represent its physical parameters. The behavior of a photovoltaic module is very similar to that of a single cell but the electric…

Measuring voltage-current and voltage-power curves of a photovoltaic module is a nice experiment for high school and undergraduate students. In labs where real sunlight is not available this experiment requires a solar simulator. A prototype of a simulator using LED lamps has been manufactured and tested, and a comparison with classical halogen…

This paper discusses the planning and development of student training and activities for the Powerline Communications Laboratory at the Technical Education Institute (TEI), Patras, Greece. Powerline communications is currently an active area of research and development that combines three separate specializations from the standard training of…

Electrospinning has been used to create nanofibers for filtration devices, tissue engineering, and protective clothing. Although electrospinning is now widely studied, because of the expensive equipment required and the advanced nature of this topic, it is not commonly found in high school science labs. Through grants from the Ohio State…

This paper details a successful and inexpensive implementation of a remote laboratory into a distance control systems course using readily available hardware and software. The physical experiment consists of a beach ball and a dc blower; the control objective is to make the height of the aerodynamically levitated beach ball track a reference…

The increased use of electronics in today's automobiles has complicated the control of circuits and actuators. Manufacturers use relays to control a variety of complex circuits--for example, those involving actuators and other components like the A/C clutch, electronic cooling fans, and blower motors. Relays allow a switch or processor to control…