"Instrumentation, Measurement, and Control in Biological Systems" Courseware

Instrumentation, Measurement, and Control in Biological Systems

By Professor Kumar Mallikarjunan
Biological Systems Engineering
Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University

This course (BSE 4004), for third-year students, uses MATLAB to connect the computer to various measurement systems using different communication protocols (e.g. USB, RS232C and GPIB). Course materials and labs include tasks such as connecting and reading from a Fluke multimeter, developing files to interface to a Fluke and National Instruments datalogger, connecting to a Minolta Colorimeter via Serial, and applying digital signal processing (FFT) and statistical analysis to data collected from the various instruments throughout the course. Lab topics and measurements include a wide range such as temperature, optical, pH, pressure, force, and flow.

Learning Outcomes

• Select sensors for monitoring and/or controlling biological systems.
• Simulate biological process control using MATLAB.
• Perform computer-based data acquisition.
• Perform data analysis such as estimating uncertainty and obtaining relevant statistical parameters.
• Perform data collection using instruments like chromatography, electrophoresis, and spectroscopy.