1

Why Automatic Control ?

Automatic control of many day to day tasks relieves the human beings from performing repetitive
manual operations. Automatic control allows optimal performance ,of dynamic systems, increases
productivity enormously, removes drudgery of performing same task again and again. Imagine
manual control of a simple room heating system. If the room temperature is to be maintained at a
desired temperature ToC, by controlling the current in an electrical heating system, the current may
be adjusted by moving the variable arm in a rheostat. The temperature of the room depends on a
host of factors : number of persons in the room, the opening and closing of doors due to persons
moving in and out, fluctuation of the supply voltage etc. A human operator has to continuously
monitor the temperature indicated by a thermometer and keep on adjusting the rheostat to maintain
the temperature all the twenty four hours. The operator should be continuously alert and relentlessly
perform a simple job of moving the arm of the rheostat. Any mistake on his part may result in great
discomfiture to the persons in the room.
Now, imagine the same operation of measuring the temperature, estimating the error between
the desired temperature and the actual temperature, moving the arm of the rheostat accurately by
an automatic controller. Since error. between the actual temperature and the desired temperature
is continuously obtained and used to activate the controller, any disturbances caused due to
movements of persons occupying the room, supply variations etc. will be automatically taken
care of. How much of a relief it is ! This is only a simple task, but many complex industrial
processes, space craft systems, missile guidance systems, robotic systems, numerical control
of machine tools employ automatic control systems. There is no field in engineering where
automatic control is not employed. Even human system is a very complex automatic feedback
control system. The modem engineers and scientists must, therefore, have a thorough knowledge
of the principles of automatic control systems.
The first automatic control was invented by James Watt. He employed a centrifugal or fly ball
governor for the speed control of a steam engine in 1770. But much of the advances had to wait for
more than a hundred years, until Minorsky, Hazen and Nyquist contributed significantly in the
development of control system theory. Hazen coined the word "servo mechanisms" to describe
feedback control systems in which the variable to be controlled is a mechanical position, velocity or
acceleration of a given object. During 1940s, frequency response methods and root 'locus
techniques were developed to design linear, stable, closed loop control systems with given
performance measures. In later part of 1950s, much emphasis was given in designing systems,
which not only satisfied given performance measures, but also provided optimum design in a given
sense. As the systems became more and more complex with more number of inputs and outputs and
with the advent of digital computers, modern control theory reverted back to methods based on time
domain analysis and synthesis using state variable representations.
In the period between 1960 and 1980, to cope up with the complexity and stringent requirements
on accuracy, speed and cost, adaptive control was developed. Both deterministic and stochastic
systems were considered and controllers were designed which were optimal, adaptive and robust.
The principles developed in automatic control theory were not only used in engineering
applications, but also in non engineering systems like economic, socio economic systems and
biological systems.

1.2 Open Loop and Closed Loop Control Systems

Open Loop Control Systems: A system in which the output has no effect on the control action is
known as an open loop control system. For a given input the system produces a certain output. If
there are any disturbances, the output changes and there is no adjustment of the input to bring back
 2

the output to the original value. A perfect calibration is required to get good accuracy and the
system should be free from any external disturbances. No measurements are made at the output.
A traffic control system is a good example of an open loop system. The signals change according
to a preset time and are not affected by the density of traffic on any road. A washing machine is
another example of an open loop control system. The quality of wash is not measured; every cycle
like wash, rinse and dry' cycle goes according to a preset timing.

Closed Loop Control Systems: These are also known as feedback control systems. A system which
maintains a prescribed relationship between the controlled variable and the reference input, and uses
the difference between them as a signal to activate the control, is known as a feedback control
system. The output or the controlled variable is measured and compared with the reference input
and an error signal is generated. This is the activating signal to the controller which, by its action,
tries to reduce the error. Thus the controlled variable is continuously fedback and compared with
the input signal. If the error is reduced to zero, the output is the desired output and is equal to the
reference input signal.

1.3 Open Loop Vs Closed Loop Control Systems

The open loop systems are simple and easier to build. Stability, which will be discussed in later
chapters, is not a problem. Open loop systems are cheaper and they should be preferred whenever
there is a fixed relationship between the input and the output and there are no disturbances.
Accuracy is not critical in such systems.
Closed loop systems are more complex, use more number of elements to build and are costly. The
stability is a major concern for closed loop systems. We have to ensure that the system is stable and
will not cause undesirable oscillations in the output. The major advantage of closed loop system is
that it is insensitive to external disturbances and variations in parameters. Comparatively cheaper
components can be used to build these systems, as accuracy and tolerance do not affect the
performance. Maintenance of closed loop systems is more difficult than open loop systems. Overall
gain of the system is also reduced.

Open Loop Systems

Advantages
1. They are simple and easy to build.
2. They are cheaper, as they use less number of components to build.
3. They are usually stable.
4. Maintenance is easy.
Disadvantages
1. They are less accurate.
2. If external disturbances are present, output differs significantly from the desired value.
3. If there are variations in the parameters of the system, the output changes.
Closed Loop Systems
Advantages
1. They are more accurate.
2. The effect of external disturbance signals can be made very small.
3. The variations in parameters of the system do not affect the output of the system i.e. the
output may be made less sensitive to variation is parameters. Hence forward path components
can be of less precision. This reduces the cost of the system.
4. Speed of the response can be greatly increased.
Disadvantages
1. They are more complex and expensive
2. They require higher forward path gains.
 3

3. The systems are prone to instability. Oscillations in the output may occur.
4. Cost of maintenance is high.

1.5 Classification of Control Systems

Depending on the type of signals present at the various parts of a feedback control system, the
system may be classified as a (i) continuous time feedback control system or a (ii) discrete time
feedback control system.

1.5.1 Continuous Time Feedback Control Systems

If the signals in all parts of a control system are continuous functions of time, the system is
classified as continuous time feedback control system. Typically all control signals are of low
frequency and if these signals are unmodulated, the system is known as a d.c. control system. These
systems use potentiometers as error detectors, d.c amplifiers to amplify the error signal, d.c. servo
motor as actuating device and d.c tachometers or potentiometers as feedback elements. If the
control signal is modulated by an a.c carrier wave, the resulting system is usually referred to as an
a.c control system.
These systems frequently use synchros as error detectors and modulators of error signal, a.c
amplifiers to amplify the error signal and a.c servo motors as actuators. These motors also serve as
demodulators and produce an unmodulated output signal.
1.5.2 Discrete Data Feedback Control Systems
Discrete data control systems are those systems in which at one or more points of the feedback
control system, the signal is in the form of pulses. Usually, the error in such system is sampled at
uniform rate and the resulting pulses are fed to the control system. In most sampled data control
systems, the signal is reconstructed as a continuous signal, using a device called 'hold device'. Holds
of different orders are employed, but the most common hold device is a zero order hold. It holds the
signal value constant, at a value equal to the amplitude of the input time function at that sampling
instant, until the next sampling instant. A typical discrete data control system is shown in Fig. 1.3
which uses a sampler and a data hold.

Error detector

r(t) e*(t) Hold Control system c(t)

sampler

Fig. 1.3 Discrete data control system

These systems are also known as sampled data control systems.
Discreet data control systems, in which a digital computer is used as one of the elements, are
known as digital control systems. The input and output to the digital computer must be binary
numbers and hence these systems require the use of digital to analog and analog to digital
converters. A typical digital control system is shown in Fig. 1.4

r(t) A/D converter Digital computer D/A converter Controlled c(t)

system

A/D converter

Fig. 1.4 Digital feedback control system

 4

Digital devices may be employed in the feedback circuits as measuring elements.

A further classification of control systems can be made depending on the nature of the systems,
namely,
1. Linear control systems
2. Non-linear control systems

1.5.3 Linear Control Systems

If a system obeys superposition principle, the system is said to be a linear system. Let xl (t) and
x2(t)
be two inputs to a system and Yl(t) and Y2t) be the corresponding outputs. For arbitrary real
constants kl and K2 , and for input kl xl(t) + k2 x2(t), if the output of the system is given by kl
Yl(t) + k2 Y2(t), then the system is said to be a linear system. There are several simple techniques
available for the analysis and design of linear control systems.

1.5.4 Non-Linear Control Systems

Any system which does not obey superposition principle is said to be a non-linear system. Physical
systems are in general non-linear and analysis of such systems is very complicated. Hence these
systems are usually linearised and well known linear techniques are used to analyse them( with a
taylor series representing the output for small variations of the input around the operating point,
neglecting high order terms, or with with the equation of a straight line for the output, tangent to the
operating point, for example).
These systems can be further classified depending on whether the parameters of the system are
constants, or varying with respect to time. When the input to a system is delayed by T seconds, if
the output is also delayed by the same time T, the system is said to be a time invariant system. Thus

x(t) System y(t) x (t- T) System y (t - T)

(a) (b)
Fig. 1.5 Time invariant system.

On the other hand, if the output is dependent on the time of application of the input, the system is
said to be a time varying system. Like non-linear systems, time varying systems also are more
complicated for analysis. We will be dealing with linear time invariant continuous systems
only.
 5

Introduction to physical modeling of systems

Whenever a task is to be performed, a set of physical objects are connected together and a suitable
input is given to them, to obtain the desired output. This group of objects is usually termed as the
'system'. The system may consist of physical objects and it may contain components, biological
economical or managerial in nature. In order to analyse, design or synthesise a complex system, a
physical model has to be obtained. This physical model may be a simplified version of the more
complex system. Certain assumptions are made to describe the nature of the system. Usually all
physical systems in the world are nonlinear in nature. But under certain conditions these systems may
be approximated by linear systems. Hence for certain purposes, a linear model may be adequate. But
if stringent accuracy conditions are to be satisfied, linear model may not be suitable. Similarly, the
parameters of the system may be functions of time. But if they are varying very slowly, they may be
assumed to be constant. In many engineering systems the elements are considered to be lumped and
their behaviour is described by considering the effect at its end points called terminals. Long lines
transmitting electrical signals, may not be adequately represented by lumped elements. A distributed
parameter representation may be called for in this case. Hence depending on the requirements of a
given job, suitable assumptions have to be made and a 'physical model' has to be first defined. The
behaviour of this physical model is then described in terms of a mathematical model so that known
techniques of mathematical analysis can be applied to the given system.

Mathematical Models of Physical Systems

The system may be considered to be consisting of an inter connection of smaller components or

elements, whose behaviour can be described by means of mathematical equations or relationships.
We will be considering systems made up of elements which are linear, lumped and
time invariant. An element is said to be linear if it obeys the principle of super position
and homogeneity. If the responses of the element for inputs xj(t) and xit) are Yj(t) and Yit)
respectively, the element is linear if the response to the input, k1 xj(t) + k2xit) is k1 Yj(t) + k2 Yi(t).

An element is said to be 'lumped' if the physical dimensions or spacial distribution of the element
does not alter the signal passing through it. The behaviour of such elements are adequately represented
by the effects at the end points called terminals. The temperature of a body may be treated as same,
at all points of the body under certain conditions. Similarly the mass of a body may be considered as
concentrated at a point. A rotating shaft may be considered as rigid. An electrical resistor may be
represented by a lumped element, since the current entering at one terminal leaves the other terminal
without undergoing any change. The voltage distribution in the physical body of the resistor is not
considered. Only the voltage across its terminals is taken for analysis. These are some examples of
lumped elements.
If the parameters representing the elements are not changing with respect to time, the element is
said to be time invariant. Thus if a system is composed of linear, lumped and time invariant
elements, its behaviour can be modelled by either linear algebraic equations or linear differential
equations with constant coefficients. If the input output relations are algebraic, the system is said to
be a static system. On the other hand, if the relations are described by differential equations, the
system is said to be a dynamic system. We are mostly concerned with dynamic response of the
systems and therefore, one of the ways by which a system is mathematically modelled is by differential
equations. Another most useful and common mathematical model is the Transfer function' of the
system. It is defined as the ratio of Laplace transform of the output to the Laplace transform of the
input. This is illustrated in Fig. 2.2.

R (s) T (S) C(s)

Fig. 2.2 Transfer function of a system

 6

In Fig. 2.2, the transfer function is,

T(s) = C(s) / R(s) ..... (2.1)

In defining the transfer function, it is assumed that all initial conditions in the system are zero.

Analogous Systems
Analogous systems have the same type of equations even though they have different physical
appearance. Mechanical systems, fluid systems, temperature systems etc. may be governed by the
same types of equations as that of electrical circuits. In such cases we call these systems as analogous
systems. A set of convenient symbols are already developed in electrical engineering which permits a
complex system to be represented by a circuit diagram. The equations can be written down easily for
these circuits and the behaviour of these circuits obtained. Thus if an analogous electrical circuit is
visualised for a given mechanical system, it is easy to predict the behaviour of the system using the
well developed mathematical tools of electrical engineering. Designing and constructing a model is
easier in electrical systems. The system can be built up with cheap elements, the values of the
elements can be changed with ease and experimentation is easy with electrical circuits. Once a circuit
is designed with the required characteristics, it can be readily translated into a mechanical system. It
is not only true for mechanical systems but also several other systems like acoustical, thermal, fluid
and even economic systems.
The analogous electrical and mechanical quantities are tabulated in Table 2.2.

Table 2.2 Analogous quantities based on force voltage analogy

Electrical system Mechanical system

Translational Rotational
Voltage V Force f Torque T
Current i Velocity u angular velocity (j)
Charge q Displacement x angular displacement
Inductance L Mass M Moment of Inertia J
Capacitance C Compliance 1/k Compliance 1/k
Resistance R Damping coefficient B Damping coefficient B

If the source is a current source, force applied in a mechanical system is analogous to the current. The
analogous quantities based on force-current analogy are given in Table 2.3

Table 2.3 Analogous quantities based on Force - Current analogy

Electrical system Mechanical system

Translational Rotational
Current i Force f Torque T
Voltage v Velocity u angular velocity (0
Flux linkages 'I' Displacement x angular displacement e
Capacitance C Mass M Moment of Inertia J
Conductance G Damping coefficient B Rotational Damping coefficient B
Inductance L Compliance 1/k Compliance 1/k

Thermal Systems
Thermal systems are those systems in which heat transfer takes place from one substance to another.
They can be characterised by thermal resistance and capacitance, analogous to electrical resistance
and capacitance. Thermal system is usually a non linear system and since the temperature of a
substance is not uniform throughout the body, it is a distributed system. But for simplicity of analysis,
 7

the system is assumed to be linear and is represented by lumped parameters.

(a) Thermal resistance
There are two types of heat flow through conductors : conduction or convection and radiation.

q Θ1 θ2

Fig. 2.17 Thermal resistance

For conduction of heat flow through a specific conductor, according to Fourier law,

q =( K A /ΔX)(θ1- θ2) ...... (2.42)

where,
q = Heat flow, Joules/Sec
K = Thermal conductivity, J/sec/m/deg k
A = Area normal to heat flow, m2
Δx = Thickness of conductor, m
θ = Temperature in oK
For convection heat transfer,
q = HA (θ1 - θ2) ..... (2.43)
where H = Convection coefficient, J/m2/sec/deg k
The thermal resistance is defined by,

R = dθ/dq = ΔX / KA (Conduction) ..... (2.44)

= 1/HA (Convection) ..... (2.45)

The unit of R is deg sec/J

For radiation heat transfer, the heat flow is governed by Stefan-Boltzmann law for a surface
receiving heat radiation from a black body:
q = KAE (θ14 – θ24)

=A σ (θ14 – θ24) ..... (2.46)

where,
σ is a constant, 5.6697 x 10-8 J/sec/m2/K4
K is a constant
E is emissivity
A is surface in m2
The radiation resistance is given by
R = dθ/dq = 1/ 4Aσθa3 deg sec/J ..... (2.4 7)
where θa is the average temperature of radiator and receiver. Since eqn. (2.46) is highly nonlinear,
it can be used only for small range of temperatures.
(b) Thermal Capacitance
Thermal capacitance is the ability to store thermal energy. If heat is supplied to a body, its internal
energy raises. For the system shown in Fig. 2.18,

q θ
 8

Fig. 2.18 Thermal Capacitance

where
C dθ/dt = q ..... (2.48)

C is the thernal capacitance

C=WCp ..... (2.49)
W = weight of block in kg
Cp ~ specific heat at constant pressure in J/deg/kg

2.2.7 Fluid Systems

Fluid systems are those systems in which liquid or gas filled tanks are connected through pipes,
tubes, orifices, valves and other flow restricting devices. Compressibility of a fluid is an important
property which influences the perfornance of fluid systems. If the velocity of sound in fluids is very
high, compared to the fluid velocity, the compressibility can be disregarded. Hence compressibility
effects are neglected in liquid systems. However compressibility plays an important role in gas systems.
The type of fluid flow, laminar or turbulent, is another important parameter in fluid systems. If the
Reynolds number is greater than 4000, the flow is said to be turbulent and if the Reynolds number is
less than 2000, it is said to be laminar flow.
For turbulent flow through pipes, orifices, valves and other flow restricting devices, the flow is
found from Bernoulli's law and is given by
q =KA √2g(hl-h2) ..... (2.50)
where q is liquid flow rate, m3/sec
K is a flow constant
A is area of restriction, m2
g is acceleration due to gravity, m/sec2
h is head of liquid, m
The turbulent resistance is found from
R = dh/dq = q/ gK2A2 = 2(h1 – h2) /q ..... (2.51)

It can be seen that the flow resistance depends on h and q and therefore it is non linear. It has to
be linearised around the operating point and used over a small range around this point.
The laminar flow resistance is found from the Poisseuille - Hagen law "

h1 - h2 = (128µL / ΠγD4) q ..... (2.52)

where h : head, m
L: length of the tube, m
D : inside diameter of the pipe, m
q : liquid flow rate, m3/sec
m : absolute viscosity, kg-sec/m2
γ : fluid density kg/m3

Since the flow is laminar, head is directly proportional to the flow rate and hence, laminar flow
resistance is given by
R = 128 µL / ΠγD4 sec/m2 ..... (2.53)

Liquid storage tanks are characterised by the capacitance and is defined by,

C= dv/dh ..... (2.54)

where v : volume of the liquid tank in m3. Hence the capacitance ofa tank is given by its area
of cross section at a given liquid surface.
A gas systems consisting of pressure vessels, connecting pipes, valves etc. may be analysed by
 9

using the fundamental law of flow of compressible gases. Again, we have to consider two types of
flow : turbulent and laminar flow. For turbulent flow through pipes, orifices, valves etc., we have :

w=KAγ√2g (pl -P2)γ ..... (2.55)

w: flow rate, kg/sec

K : flow constant
A : area of restriction, m2
γ : gas density, kg/m3
p : pressure in kg/m2

Turbulent gas flow resistance is therefore given by

R= dp/dw sec/m2 ..... (2.56)
This is not easy to determine since the rational expansion factor depends on pressure. Usually the
resistance is determined from a plot of pressure against flow rate for a given device.
The laminar gas flow resistance is obtained using eqn. (2.50).

p1 p2 w p
resistance R
capacitance C

Fig. 2.19 Gas resistance and capacitance

The capacitance parameter for pressure vessels is defined as

C = dv/dp ..... (2.57)

where v : weight of gas in vessel, kg

p : pressure kg/m2

The flow rate and the gas pressure are related by the continuity law :

Cdp/dt = w)

Where w is the flow rate in kg/sec. ..... (2.58)

Let us now consider some thermal and fluid systems and obtain their transfer functions.

Example 2.6
Find the transfer function C(s)/V(s) of the thermal system shown in Fig. 2.20. Heat is supplied by
convection to a copper rod of diameter O.

u temperature copper rod

convección C(temperature)

Fig. 2.20 Thermal System

Solution:
The thermal resistance of the copper rod, from eqn. (2.45), is;

R= 1/HA
Here A is the surface area of the rod.
Hence A = ΠDL
 10

where L is the length of the rod.

. . R = 1/ΠDL deg sec/J
The ther mal capacitance of the rod, from eqn. (2.49), is given by :
C=WC p
= (ΠD2L/4) pCp
where, Cp is the specific heat of copper
and p is the density of copper.
From eqn. (2.43), we have, q = HA (u - c) and from eqn. (2.48),

C dc/dt =q

Combining these two equations,

Cdc/dt =1/R (u-c)

C dc /dt + C/R= u/R

RCdc/dt +c=u

where RC = T is the time constant of the system.

Tdc/dt+c=u

T=RC=(1/ΠDLH)(ΠD2L/4)pCp
= DpCp / 4H
Thus the transfer function of the system is,
C(s)/u(s) = 1/ (Ts + 1)
where
T = DpCp/4H

Example 2.7
Obtain the transfer function C(s) /U(s) for the system shown in Fig. 2.21. c is the displacement of the
piston with mass M.

U
Pressure B
Damping mass,M
gas A,area

Fig. 2.21 A fluid system

Solution: The system is a combination of mechanical system with mass M, damping B and a gas
system subjected to pressure.
The equilibrium equation is
Md2 c/dt2 +Bdc/dt=A[U-Pg] ..... (2.1)
Where Pg is the upward pressure exerted by the compressed gas. For a small change in displacement
of mass, the pressure exerted is equal to,
Pg = (P/V) Ac
where, P is the pressure exerted by the gas with a volume of gas under the piston to be V
But PV= WRT
where, R is the gas constant.
and T is the temperature of the gas.
p = (WRT/V2) Ac (2.2)
Substituting eqn. (2.2) in eqn. (2.1) we have,
Md2c/dt2 + B dc/dt + (wRT/V2) A2c = A u
 11

The transfer function is,

C(s) / U(s) = A / (Ms2+Bs+K) where K = (wRT/V2)A2 .