Design of a MATLAB-based teaching tool in introductory fractional-order systems and controls

In this work-in-progress paper, the topic of fractional-order modeling and control in education is discussed. The study of fractional calculus, fractional-order systems (FOS) and the applications thereof have been of interest to many scientists and engineers as evidenced in the recent exponential growth in the number of corresponding research publications worldwide. One particular area of study is fractional-order control design due to the additional flexibility in tuning the controllers that fractional-order calculus provides. Although there is a wide growth in research productivity in this particular area, the number of educational resources are still limited while researchers and students would find their own respective ways to understand the concepts of fractional calculus and how fractional-order systems and controls work. The goal of this contribution is to establish a simple but effective set of teaching tools that can be used by students and researchers in understanding concepts of fractional calculus and its applications, especially on FOS and more specifically on control design. The MATLAB tool currently being developed is a graphical user interface (GUI) that is designed to show the time and frequency responses of FOS models and the primary function of which is to study basics of fractional PID controller design. The presented tool is a potential educational material that can be used either in an undergraduate or graduate class in fractional calculus applications, or could be used as a tool for self-learning by those who are interested in the topic.