PROCESS CONTROL - is the ability to monitor and adjust a process to give a desired output.

It is used in
industry to maintain quality and improve performance. An example of a simple process
that is controlled is keeping the temperature of a room at a certain temperature using a
heater and a thermostat.

SYSTEMS – refers to a set of components that are connected to form and act as an entire unit.
INSTRUMENTATION SYSTEM – is collection of instruments used to measure, monitor, and
control a process.

CONCEPTS OF FEDDBACK AND INSTRUMENTATION SYSTEM:

Instrumentation System:
There are many applications of instrumentation systems, within technological areas as large as
those associated with communications, defense, transportation, education, industrial
manufacturing and research and development, and chemical and other process industries.
Developing and building instrumentation systems involves numerous scientific and technical
disciplines, such as electronic, electrical, control, mechanical, chemical, metallurgical, and
industrial engineering. In recent years many factors—such as the development of advanced
mathematical theories, improvements in information and communication systems, and
developments in sensors, measurement technology, computers, digital systems, Internet
technology, and human–machine interactions— have made the widespread application of
instrumentation systems possible. Instrumentation systems have become the main cutting edge
of technology, leading to higher productivity and thus becoming a major factor in deciding the
competitiveness or survival of many businesses.
Modern instruments and instrumentation systems are largely based on digital technology. Digital
instruments are developed by using dedicated ICs, microcontrollers and microprocessors that
give them flexibility in information handling, networking and data communications. In
manufacturing industry, processing plants, control and automation, and in other industrial
applications, many instruments are used together to form very large instrumentation systems.
These large systems can only be handled by a computer, or a number of computers. This article
discusses microprocessor- and computer-based instrumentation systems. Therefore, a large
proportion is dedicated to the basic principles of digital systems and digital process controllers.
Many examples are given.

Today, many advanced instrumentation systems are available, mainly directed at improving the
productivity of industry and product quality. In many applications, instrumentation systems are
custom-designed to meet specific process requirements. At the same time, instrumentation
systems may have high initial costs, and in some cases they may lead to a loss of flexibility in
production. Since the mid-1980s, many large firms have invested heavily in the procurement of
hardware and software, creating extensive demand and accelerating research and development
related to instrumentation and instrumentation systems. Furthermore, publicly-funded
programs such as the Automated Manufacturing Research Facility (AMRF) have led to
collaboration between industry and government. As a result, these efforts have shifted
instrumentation systems from the stage of being general concepts to widespread
implementation. Although instrumentation systems can be used in any continuous process, they
may largely be categorized into two main divisions: process instrumentation and automation.
Advances in computing have played a major role in the development and implementation of
these systems. In industry, computers form the core of direct digital control (DDC), supervisory
control, distributed control systems (DCS), hybrid control systems, and supervisory control and
data acquisition (SCADA), as well as simple systems such as single-loop controllers. SCADA, for
example, allows reliable communication between devices located in remote sites using
communication techniques such as microwave signal transmission and telemetry.
Instrumentation systems constitute the heart of many operation systems, such as remote aircraft
and satellite control, automated vehicle and transport systems, and fully-automated
manufacturing plants and processes. Advanced developments in instrumentation systems are
supported by many secondary concepts such as computer-aided design (CAD) and computer-
aided engineering (CAE). Automation is integrated with management concepts in the computer-
aided manufacturing (CAM), computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM), just-in-time (JIT) type
inventory management, and flexible manufacturing systems (FMS).

Instrumentation systems are designed by taking the following factors into consideration:
• user requirements or specifications;
• functional design specifications;
• complete system design and structure;
• the test specification (for example, codes and integrated testing);
• the warranty, and other support such as training; and
• health and safety issues.

Instrumentation systems perform the following major functions:

• on-line mathematics, which establishes the monitoring and controlling process variables
that cannot be measured directly but may be computed from other measurable variables;
• determining set points, and setting limits for variables and signals representing variables;
• selecting variables, and performing programmed operations for control and decision-
making purposes; and
• logical and conditional moves. In the next section an overview of instruments will be
given. Further information can be obtained in the instruments and instrumentation
section of this encyclopedia.
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Feedback:

There are several techniques used for the process control system that are useful in the analysis and
design of the modern process control system. The feedback control system is a type used in this type of
control system. Feedback controls are widely used in modern automated systems. A feedback
control system consists of five basic components: (1) input, (2) process being controlled, (3)
output, (4) sensing elements, and (5) controller and actuating devices. These five components
are illustrated in Figure 1. The term closed-loop feedback control is often used to describe this
kind of system.

Feedback control system:

In the feedback, the output of the control system is measured and compared to the input
reference signal. The deviation (error) between the two is used by the controller that will send the
output so that the system error is zero.

A feedback system is one in which a sample of the output signal is taken and then sent to the input
to form an error signal that drives the system.

In a Feedback System, all or part of the output signal either positive or negative is fed back to the
input.

Feedback Systems process signals and as such are signal processors. The processing part of a
feedback system may be electrical or electronic, ranging from a very simple to a highly complex
circuit.
Why feedback control systems are used?

• The characteristics of the circuit, such as the gain and response of the system, can be
controlled with precision.
• Circuit characteristics can be made independent of operating conditions such as supply
voltages or temperature variations.
• The distortion of the signal due to the non-linear nature of the components used can be
considerably reduced.
• The frequency response, gain and bandwidth of a circuit or system can be easily controlled
within tight limits.

There are just two main types of feedback control namely: Negative Feedback and Positive
Feedback.

Positive feedback system:

Positive feedback control of the op-amp is achieved by applying a small part of the output voltage
signal at Vout back to the non-inverting ( + ) input terminal via the feedback resistor, RF.

If the input voltage Vin is positive, the operational amplifier amplifies this positive signal and the
output becomes more positive. Part of this output voltage is returned to the input by the feedback
network. Therefore, the input voltage becomes more positive, causing an even higher output
voltage and so on. Finally, the output saturates in its positive supply lane.

Negative feedback system

In a negative feedback control

system, the set point and output
values are subtracted from each
other since the feedback is out of
phase with the original input. The
effect of negative (or degenerative)
feedback is to reduce the gain.
If the input voltage Vin is positive, the operational amplifier amplifies this positive signal, but
because it is connected to the inverting input of the amplifier, the output becomes more
negative. Part of this output voltage is returned to the input by the feedback network of Rf.
Therefore, the input voltage is reduced by the negative feedback signal, which causes an even
smaller output voltage

Advantage of feedback control system:

• It is very simple technique that compensates for all disturbances

• The controller adjusts the controlled variable (affected by the disturbance) with the set
point
• The feedback control circuit does not worry about the disturbance that enters the
process

Disadvantage of feedback control system

• It does not take corrective measures until after the disturbance has altered the process
and generated an error signal.
• The feedback controllers continue changing its output until measurement and set point
are in agreement.

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Introduction:

There are two types of control systems namely Open Loop & Closed Loop system.
Open loop control systems are non-feedback control systems
Closed loop control systems are feedback control systems

Open Loop (Manual Control):

Figure shows what is called OPEN LOOP or MANUAL control. The process is temperature
control. The indicator is a thermometer. The correcting unit is the gas control valve. The
controller is the operator who uses his own judgement to keep the water temperature constant.

Manual control has its uses as it is cheap to install and maintain, and simple to
operate. However, it is very seldom used in industry because:
 • The operator must remain in position at all times.
• It cannot be used if the operator is placed in a dangerous area.
• The process changes faster than the operator can react.
• A mistake by the operator can have dangerous results.

These problems are avoided by using automatic control (closed loop). The job of the instrument
technician is to make sure that this type of control operates correctly.

Modern household appliances now use automatic control to make work easier. For example:-

• Refrigerators and water heaters use automatic temperature control.

• Washing machines use automatic heating and water control

Advantages Disadvantages
• simple • Inaccurate
• stable • unreliable
• easy construction • Remove the disturbances occurring
from external sources.

What are Open Loop & Closed Loop system

Open-loop controller
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For other uses of "Open-loop", see Open-loop (disambiguation).

This article includes a list of general references, but it remains largely unverified because it lacks sufficient
corresponding inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations.
(January 2015) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

In an open-loop controller, also called a non-feedback controller, the control action from the
controller is independent of the "process output", which is the process variable that is being
controlled. It does not use feedback to determine if its output has achieved the desired goal of the
input command or process "set point".

There are many open-loop controls, such as on/off switching of valves, machinery, lights, motors
or heaters, where the control result is known to be approximately sufficient under normal
conditions without the need for feedback. The advantage of using open-loop control in these cases
is the reduction in component count and complexity. However, an open-loop system cannot
correct any errors that it makes or correct for outside disturbances, and cannot engage in machine
learning.

Contents

• 1 Open-loop and closed-loop (feedback) control

• 2 Applications
• 3 Feedback control
• 4 See also
• 5 References

Open-loop and closed-loop (feedback) control

An electromechanical timer, normally used for open-

loop control based purely on a timing sequence, with
no feedback from the process.

Fundamentally, there are two types of control loop: open-loop (feedforward) control, and closed
loop (feedback) control.

In open-loop control, the control action from the controller is independent of the "process output"
(or "controlled process variable"). A good example of this is a central heating boiler controlled only
by a timer, so that heat is applied for a constant time, regardless of the temperature of the
building. The control action is the switching on/off of the boiler, but the controlled variable should
be the building temperature, but is not as this is open-loop control of the boiler, which does not
give closed-loop control of the temperature.

In closed loop control, the control action from the controller is dependent on the process output.
In the case of the boiler analogy this would include a thermostat to monitor the building
temperature, and thereby feed back a signal to ensure the controller maintains the building at the
temperature set on the thermostat. A closed loop controller therefore has a feedback loop which
ensures the controller exerts a control action to give a process output the same as the "reference
input" or "set point". For this reason, closed loop controllers are also called feedback controllers.

The definition of a closed loop control system according to the British Standard Institution is "a
control system possessing monitoring feedback, the deviation signal formed as a result of this
feedback being used to control the action of a final control element in such a way as to tend to
reduce the deviation to zero.

Applications

Electric clothes dryer, which is open-loop

controlled by running the dryer for a set time,
regardless of clothes dryness.

An open-loop controller is often used in simple processes because of its simplicity and low cost,
especially in systems where feedback is not critical. A typical example would be an older model
domestic clothes dryer, for which the length of time is entirely dependent on the judgement of
the human operator, with no automatic feedback of the dryness of the clothes.

For example, an irrigation sprinkler system, programmed to turn on at set times could be an
example of an open-loop system if it does not measure soil moisture as a form of feedback. Even
if rain is pouring down on the lawn, the sprinkler system would activate on schedule, wasting
water.

Another example is a stepper motor used for control of position. Sending it a stream of electrical
pulses causes it to rotate by exactly that many steps, hence the name. If the motor was always
assumed to perform each movement correctly, without positional feedback, it would be open-
loop control. However, if there is a position encoder, or sensors to indicate the start or finish
positions, then that is closed-loop control, such as in many inkjet printers. The drawback of open-
loop control of steppers is that if the machine load is too high, or the motor attempts to move
too quickly, then steps may be skipped. The controller has no means of detecting this and so the
machine continues to run slightly out of adjustment until reset. For this reason, more complex
robots and machine tools instead use servomotors rather than stepper motors, which
incorporate encoders and closed-loop controllers.

However, open-loop control is very useful and economic for well-defined systems where the
relationship between input and the resultant state can be reliably modeled by a mathematical
formula. For example, determining the voltage to be fed to an electric motor that drives a
constant load, in order to achieve a desired speed would be a good application. But if the load
were not predictable and became excessive, the motor's speed might vary as a function of the
load not just the voltage, and an open-loop controller would be insufficient to ensure repeatable
control of the velocity.

An example of this is a conveyor system that is required to travel at a constant speed. For a
constant voltage, the conveyor will move at a different speed depending on the load on the
motor (represented here by the weight of objects on the conveyor). In order for the conveyor to
run at a constant speed, the voltage of the motor must be adjusted depending on the load. In
this case, a closed-loop control system would be necessary.

Thus there are many open-loop controls, such as switching valves, lights, motors or heaters on
and off, where the result is known to be approximately sufficient without the need for feedback.

Feedback control

A feed back control system, such as a PID (proportional-integral-derivative) controller, can be

improved by combining the feedback (or closed-loop) control of a PID controller with feed-
forward (or open-loop) control. Knowledge about the system (such as the desired acceleration
and inertia) can be fed forward and combined with the PID output to improve the overall system
performance. The feed-forward value alone can often provide the major portion of the controller
output. The PID controller primarily has to compensate whatever difference or error remains
between the setpoint (SP) and the system response to the open-loop control. Since the feed-
forward output is not affected by the process feedback, it can never cause the control system to
oscillate, thus improving the system response without affecting stability. Feed forward can be
based on the setpoint and on extra measured disturbances. Setpoint weighting is a simple form
of feed forward.

For example, in most motion control systems, in order to accelerate a mechanical load under
control, more force is required from the actuator. If a velocity loop PID controller is being used
to control the speed of the load and command the force being applied by the actuator, then it is
beneficial to take the desired instantaneous acceleration, scale that value appropriately and add
it to the output of the PID velocity loop controller. This means that whenever the load is being
accelerated or decelerated, a proportional amount of force is commanded from the actuator
regardless of the feedback value. The PID loop in this situation uses the feedback information to
change the combined output to reduce the remaining difference between the process setpoint
and the feedback value. Working together, the combined open-loop feed-forward controller and
closed-loop PID controller can provide a more responsive control system in some situation
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Closed Loop (Automatic Control)

Figure shows a simple automatic controller. The boiler now has the loop closed and no
operator is required. The following items are added.

• The temperature transmitter (T.T) which measures (senses) the temperature of the hot
water and changes it to a standard signal.
• A signal line from the transmitter to the controller, the signal may be either pneumatic
or electrical.
• A controller which keeps the temperature of the hot water at a position set by the
operator (set point)
• The controller adjusts the correcting unit (automatic control valve) using an output
signal line similar to the input line from the transmitter.
• The controller may provide alarm signals to alert the operator if the system fails. It may
also shut off the gas if the water starts to boil.

Advantages

• Accuracy
• Noise reduction ability

Disadvantages:

• complex construction
• reduces the overall gain of the system.
• less Stable than open loop