86493 - Electronics Systems

Learning outcomes

The course aims at giving students those tools needed to know and understand the fundamental elements by which electronic systems operate in the framework of automotive systems.
The goal is not to educate electronic designers, rather to offer a broad and basic competence on the working of electronic systems, that is developing the ability to work as a part of interdisciplinary teams also including electronic designers and experts in information technologies.

Course contents

Introduction: sensing, signal conditioning, information processing, actuation. Structure of electronic systems interfaced with mechanical parts. Fundamentals of circuit theory.
The ingredients: basics of electronic devices. Diodes, MOS Transistors, power devices. Use of transistors as switches and as continuous regulators.
Elements on technologies for sensors and actuators.
Digital systems: logic gates; digital signals; combinatorial and sequential networks; logic families; representation of numbers; fundamental function blocks; ALUs and microcontrollers; PLAs and FPGAs.
Analog systems: the operational amplifier, basic filters, techniques for signal conditioning.
Data acquisition and information representation: D/A and A/D conversion. Time encoding: V/F and F/V conversion; pulse width and pulse density modulations.
Hints on actuation and power conversion: more on continuous regulation and switched mode regulation.

Readings/Bibliography

- A. Smaili, F. Mrad, “Applied Mechatronics”, Oxford University Press, 2008
- W. Ribbens, “Understanding automotive electronics: an engineering perspective”, Elsevier, 8th Edition, 2017

Teaching methods

The course will be based on theoretical lectures presented both on the blackboard and using slides. Some lectures will be devoted to the presentation of exercises, examples, case studies, both at the blackboard and through the use of numerical computation platforms (e.g., Matlab), graphical environment for programming and simulation of multidomain dynamical systems (e.g., Simulink), or circuit level simulators (e.g., Spice). The slides used for the course will be made available for the students. The same shall happen for the code used in the examples, the demonstrations and the case studies.

Assessment methods

Written and oral exam.

Passing a written test in the same session is a pre-requisite to take part in the oral exam.

Teaching tools

Slides and practical sessions during which the solution of realistic problems is illustrated with the aid of Matlab code, as well as Simulink and Spice simulations.

Office hours

See the website of Sergio Callegari