Part A: Course Overview

Course Title: Industrial Automation

Credit Points: 12.00

Terms

Course Code	Campus	Career	School	Learning Mode	Teaching Period(s)
EEET2665	City Campus	Postgraduate	172H School of Engineering	Face-to-Face	Sem 1 2025

Course Coordinator: Dr Carlos Teixeira

Course Coordinator Phone: +61 3 9925

Course Coordinator Email: carlos.teixeira@rmit.edu.au

Pre-requisite Courses and Assumed Knowledge and Capabilities

It is assumed that at the time of commencing this course you have a basic knowledge of electronics and digital systems. It is also assumed that you have basic mathematical skills and a general knowledge of common non-electrical physical quantities, such as temperature, pressure, flow rate, force and torque.

Course Description

This course introduces you to practical methods of automatic control of machines, processes and systems. All major parts of a modern industrial control system will be described and their principles explained. These include the Programmable Logic Controller (PLC), as the system ‘brain’, various field devices, which allow the system to ‘sense’ and ‘affect’ the controlled environment, and  communication between  the system components. The principles of developing PLC programs and practical examples of control systems will be also presented. The course provides individual hands-on experience in PLC programming.

Objectives/Learning Outcomes/Capability Development

At postgraduate level this course develops the following Program Learning Outcomes:

PLO 2. Demonstrate an  advanced and integrated understanding of specialist bodies of knowledge within the engineering discipline
PLO 5. Utilise advanced mathematics, software, tools and techniques, in the conduct of research into the  design and analysis of complex engineering systems
PLO 6. Use a systems engineering approach to synthesize and apply procedures for design, prototyping and testing to develop creative,  sustainable and integrated  solutions to complex engineering problems.

On the completion of the course you will be able to:

CLO1 Develop a specialised PLC program for a complex automatic control system.
CLO2 Satisfy complex engineering specifications using advanced hardware functional blocks.
CLO3 Create a closed-loop automatic control system utilising PLC and I/O field devices based on advanced engineering theories and methods.
CLO4 Design an integrated automation system that is user-friendly, robust, and safe in its intended operational environment.
CLO5 Develop and validate specialised software for real industrial PLC hardware using a systems engineering approach.

Overview of Learning Activities

The learning activities in this course include study of theoretical principles, problem solving, design, software development and laboratory work. These activities take the form of student participation in tutorials, supervised laboratory classes, unsupervised laboratory work  and individual study.

Overview of Learning Resources

Learning material will be available on-line. You will be able to use the laboratory equipment and computer software provided by the School for the purpose of completing your laboratory assignments and developing your practical programming skills.

Overview of Assessment

This course has no hurdle requirements.

Assessment Task 1: Labs, 50%,  CLO1, CLO2, CLO4 and CLO5
Assessment Task 2: Test, 25%, CLO1, CLO2, CLO3 and CLO5
Assessment Task 3: Test, 25%, CLO1, CLO2, CLO3 and CLO5

If you have a long-term medical condition and/or disability it may be possible to negotiate to vary aspects of the learning or assessment methods. You can contact the program coordinator or Equitable Learning Services if you would like to find out more.