Matthias Broer
R&D Intern
Matthias Broer, a student of Technical Informatics, conducted a data acquisition system research for the PLC during his internship.
Exploring data acquisition systems
Matthias Broer is a student at the Technical Informatics program at the Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences. During his internship at the Research and Development department of JRC | Alphatron Marine he researched a data acquisition system for the PLC (Programmable Logic Controller). Matthias has always been fascinated by the technology present onboard ships and was eager to learn more about it. That's why he became so excited when he discovered the JRC | Alphatron Marine website. He was attracted to our product design and development and decided to apply for an internship.
“For my internship assignment, I researched a data acquisition system for the PLC. I compared two different systems, Lynx and DAS” says Matthias. The idea behind this is that these systems collect data from the PLC and that this information can then be forwarded to, for example, the ship's bridge, so that it can be displayed there. The advantage of this is that the data acquisition is separated from the data visualization. Matthias worked with engineers and designers from the R&D department to develop a prototype of the system and test it for accuracy and effectiveness. He also wrote reports, prepared documentation and provided feedback on the system. He also gave presentations to management and other stakeholders, providing insights and recommendations based on his research.
Gaining new skills and insights
Matthias soon noticed that his knowledge was expanded during his internship at JRC | Alphatron Marine, through which he learned new things and skills. “During the internship, I learned more and more what it is like to work via a scrum method. I had already learned the basics at my school, but there it was always applied in a way that it fits within the education system. Here, I have learned how to use it in a business environment.” In addition, Matthias has learned many subject-related things, such as setting up a toolchain, how software can be built for specific hardware and how new software can be written through existing interfaces that can talk to more complex systems and then fit into the complete packageagain.
Reflecting on a valuable internship
“I had a great experience with my internship.” Matthias says that he really enjoyed working on something for a longer period of time and seeing the end result. “I gained valuable knowledge that I can use during future projects.” After his internship at JRC | Alphatron Marine, Matthias is going back to school. “At school I will be working on various projects. The first 10 weeks after my internship, I will focus on embedded systems”. What the future has in store for Matthias is still uncertain, but we would like to thank him for his efforts and we wish the best for his future!