The new learning panels include power electronics, DC/AC power circuits, solar power, wind power, battery storage systems, electromechanical systems, and AC power transmission.

This semester the Department of Electrical Engineering launched the revamped Energy Systems Laboratory course with new state-of-the-art equipment and cutting-edge hardware. The laboratory is being offered alongside a theoretical Energy Systems course. Both the laboratory and theory courses were designed by Professors Jaedo Park and Fernando Mancilla-David, and provide the students with a broader perspective in energy systems, including technologies well beyond the traditional focus on electromechanical energy conversion. 

“The new laboratory course offers firsthand experience on various topics that the new lecture course covers,” said Park. “This provides students tangible exposure to contemporary power and energy systems.”

As a required upper-division course, the lab covers basic electric power and energy systems principles and provides students hands-on training with modern energy systems. The seven new Festo Didactic’s LabVolt Experimental Panels include power electronics, DC/AC power circuits, solar power, wind power, battery storage systems, electromechanical systems, and AC power transmission.

“The goal was to update the power engineering curriculum to include state-of-the-art technologies,” said instructor Jeff Selman. “The lab focuses on the use of these technologies to provide foundational training for all students in the electrical engineering program.”

The revamped course aligns with current national initiatives in that it provides the students with working theoretical knowledge and hands-on experience of renewable energy technologies. The expansion to include renewable energy into the lab gives students additional education and training, making them more marketable after graduation. Furthermore, the department offers advanced, in-depth courses and labs on renewable energy, power systems, power electronics, and electric machines and drives for those interested after these introductory courses. Finally, the new equipment is compatible with hybrid learning modules, making it more accessible to all students.

This new lab and course are just one piece of the revamped electrical engineering curriculum.