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Control systems are all around us in the modern 
technological world. They maintain the environment, 
lighting, and power in our buildings and factories, they 
regulate the operation of our cars, consumer electronics, 
and manufacturing processes, they enable our 
transportation and communications systems, and they are 
critical elements in our military and space systems. For the 
most part, they are hidden from view, buried within the 
code of processors, executing their functions accurately 
and reliably. Nevertheless, their existence is a major 
intellectual and engineering accomplishment that is still 
evolving and growing, promising ever more important 
consequences to society.
Richard M. Murray, “Control in an Information Rich World:
Report of the Panel on Future Directions in Control,
Dynamics, and Systems”, 2002
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Control Systems
ELEC 352

Chapter 1
Introduction to Control Systems

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System: a system is a set of elements in dynamic interaction, organized

for a goal, i.e. it has a sense of “purpose.”
The several ways to think of and define a system include:
• A system is composed of parts. All the parts of a system must be
related (directly or indirectly), else there are really two or more
distinct systems
• A system is encapsulated, has a boundary. The boundary of a system
is a decision made by an observer, or a group of observers.
• A system can be nested inside another system.
• A system receives input from, and sends output into, the wider
environment. A system consists of processes that transform inputs into
outputs.

1-1 Introduction: Definitions

Systems. A system is a combination of components that act together and
perform a certain objective.
The controlled variable is the quantity or condition that is measured and
controlled. Normally, the controlled variable is the output of the system.
The control signal or manipulated variable is the quantity or condition
that is varied by the controller so as to affect the value of the controlled
variable.
Plants. A plant may be a piece of equipment, perhaps just a set of
machine parts functioning together, the purpose of which is to perform a
particular operation. The system to be controlled is called the plant.
Processes. Operations, we shall call any operation to be controlled a
process.
Disturbances. A disturbance is a signal that tends to adversely affect the
value of the output of a system.
Feedback Control: is an operation that, in the presence of disturbances,
tends to reduce the difference between the output of a system and some
reference input and does so on the basis of this difference. 4

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1-2 Examples:
Speed control system

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A schematic
diagram showing
the principle of the
water clock

Temperature control system:

Manual control
(Closed-loop)

Automatic control
(closed-loop)

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Business systems

Robust control: any model of a plant we want to control will include an

error in the modeling process. To ensure that the controller designed
based on a model will work satisfactorily when this controller is used
with the actual plant, the control system designed based on this approach
is called a robust control system.

System configurations

Open and closed loop systems. (a) The output of system 1 is

used as the input of system 2, and the output of system 2
becomes the input of system 1, creating a closed loop system.
(b) The interconnection between system 2 and system 1 is
removed, and the system is said to be open loop.

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1-3 Closed-Loop Control versus Open-Loop Control

• Closed-Loop Control Systems. Feedback control systems are often
referred to as closed-loop control systems.
• Open-Loop Control Systems. Those systems in which the output has
no effect on the control action are called open-loop control systems.
• Note that any control system that operates on a time basis (schedule)
is open loop.
• Open-Loop control examples
a. Time driven: e.g. traffic lights

b. Event driven: e.g. automatic

boom gate

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Time driven: Washing machine based on timer

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Event driven: Active fire protection

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Sensor/ Physical 
Timer Actuator Plant output

Physical Sensor/ Physical 

input Actuator Plant output

Input,
Stored f(t), +_ Actuator Plant Sensor Output
Reference

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Sensors and Actuators

A transducer is any
physical device that
converts one form of
energy into another.

The process of converting one form of energy to another is known as

transduction.
One type of transducer are sensors, a sensor is a kind of transducer that
converts some physical phenomenon into an electrical signal that can
then be interpreted to determine a reading. A microphone is a sensor that
takes vibrational energy (sound waves), and converts it to electrical
energy in a useful way for other components in the system to correlate
back to the original sound.
Another type of transducer that you will encounter in many control
systems is an actuator. In simple terms, an actuator operates in the
reverse direction of a sensor. It takes an electrical input signal and 15
turns
it into physical action. For instance, an electric motor, speakers.

Open Loops and closed Loops

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Open loop control systems: Closed loop (feedback) control

The advantages: systems
1. Simple construction The advantages:
2. Less expensive than closed loop 1. Disturbances rejection
3. Does not destabilize stable 2. Reduced sensitivity to
system parameter variations
3. Unstable processes can be
stabilized
The disadvantages:
1. Disturbances causes errors in the The disadvantages:
output 1. Complex construction
2. Frequent recalibration is 2. More expensive
necessary 3. Can destabilize stable
3. Cannot stabilize unstable system system

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This robot demonstrates robust perfect adaptation by maintaining a

constant distance from its target, the moving booklet. Such performance
is impossible without negative feedback that involves a controller 18
called
an integrator.

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1-4 Design and Compensation of Control Systems

Performance Specifications.

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System compensation
• A device inserted into the system for the purpose of satisfying the
specifications is called a compensator (or controller). The
compensator compensates for deficient performance of the original
system.
• The addition of a suitable device is called compensation.

Design Procedure
• set up a mathematical model of the control system
• adjust the parameters of a compensator
• the checking of the system performance by analysis with each
adjustment of the parameters
• tests the performance of the closed-loop system
• the final system meets the performance specifications and, at the same
time, is reliable and economical.
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Water level regulation

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Cruise control: From “Feedback Systems”, Aström and Murray,

A feedback system for controlling the speed of a vehicle. In the block 
diagram on the left, the speed of the vehicle is measured and compared 
to the desired speed within the “Compute” block. Based on the 
difference in the actual and desired speeds, the throttle (or brake) is 
used to modify the force applied to the vehicle by the engine, drivetrain 
and wheels. The figure on the right shows the response of the control 
system to a commanded change in speed from 25 m/s to 30 m/s. The 
three different curves correspond to differing masses of the vehicle, 
between 1000 and 3000 kg, demonstrating the robustness of the closed 
loop system to a very large change in the vehicle characteristics. 22

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Analysis and design objective

1. Stability: in BIBO sense
2. Transient response: in this part of the response, we are mostly
focusing on the speed of the response i.e system responsiveness
3. Steady state response: accuracy in the sense of the difference
between the actual output and the desired output.

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Case Study:
Antenna
Azimuth

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To put things in perspective; automatic control is about synergy.

Synergy is the interaction of multiple elements in a system to 
produce an effect different from or greater than the sum of their 
individual effects.

Automatic control is about making systems behave as desired

without continuous human intervention.
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Conclusion:

Control System

Closed Loop Open Loop

Feedback‐based: Event‐based: Memory‐based:

The input to the  The input to the  The input to the 
plant is  generated  plant is generated  plant is stored as a 
by sensors and  by sensors; e.g.  pre‐programmed 
stored reference  Automatic doors,  function of time; 
signals. Weighing scales. e.g. traffic light

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