Second Prize
eZ-Stunt
(complete abstract)

Practical experiments are critical when teaching system-control theory, closed loops, pole-placement methods, and real-time regulation. Most experiments are based on trivial systems or are only simulation based. In both cases, the learning performance is poor. The eZ-Stunt platform is a $15 toy RC car. The onboard radio receiver and power drivers were kept in tact, but tracks were cut on the PCB between the receiver chip and the transistor-based power amplifiers. The main modification to the car (except the addition of the processor board) is an articulated vertical 40-cm aluminum bar, fixed on the axle of a high-precision potentiometer. The game (i.e., required control loop) is to automatically move the car back and forth to keep the bar as vertical as possible, even if someone gently touches the bar. The eZ-Stunt’s miniature controller board is built around a Z80S183 mixed-signal microcontroller. The processor gets the current angle of the vertical bar with a potentiometer and the integrated 10-bit ADC of the Z80S183. It then drives the motor of the car backward and forward with PWM signals generated by its programmable output generator.

Robert Lacoste
Chaville, France
robert_lacoste@ yahoo.fr
Prize: 53” HDTV & $500