Linear Control System Lab Lab12

Implementation of on/off Control and Modelling Of HVAC Board

Objectives

The objective of this exercise includes the understanding on off control and modelling of heat
ventilation air conditioning (HVAC) board.

List of equipment/Software

Following equipment/software is required:

1) NI ELVIS (+)
2) HVAC Board
3) PC
Introduction to HVAC Board

The Quanser QNET 2.0 HVAC Board for NI ELVIS II, pictured in Figure 11.1, is a versatile
system designed to teach and demonstrate a variety of HVAC based experiments. The system is
driven by an array of resistors as a heater and a high-quality brushless fan. There is a total of six
high accuracy temperature sensors along the heating channel that can be used for a variety of heat
flow experiments. The setup is completed by additional ambient and heating chamber temperature
sensors. Main QNET HVAC features:
• Compact and complete HVAC system for NI ELVIS II(+)
• High air flow brushless DC fan
• Six high-accuracy temperature sensors along the heating channel
• Built-in ambient temperature sensor
• Built-in PWM amplifier

Figure 11.1: Quanser QNET 2.0 HVAC Board for NI ELVIS II

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 Linear Control System Lab Lab12

HVAC Board Components:

The main components comprising the QNET HVAC are labelled in Figure and are listed in Table
11.1.

Figure 11.2: General layout of QNET HVAC

Table 11.1: QNET HVAC component nomenclature

NI ELVIS II(+) Components:

Table 11.2: ELVIS II components

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 Linear Control System Lab Lab12

Section I: Relay Control/On Off Control

On-off control or relay feedback is one of the simplest control strategies. The heater is switched
on when the temperature is lower than the desired value, and the heater is switched off when the
temperature is higher than the desired value. To avoid rapid switches, it is common to introduce a
hysteresis in the relay switch. A block diagram of a system with relay feedback is shown in Figure
11.3.

Figure 11.3: Block diagram of the heater system with relay feedback
The error, variable e in Figure 11.3 is the difference between the reference temperature Tr and the
actual chamber temperature Tc, The on-off controller is implemented using a relay switch with
hysteresis, as shown in Figure 7. The heater actuator is represented by a saturation block and the
chamber plant is represented by the transfer function P (s).

Figure 11.4: Input and output relation for an on-off controller with hysteresis

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 Linear Control System Lab Lab12

The hysteresis width ∆Th in Figure 11.4 has to be chosen such that a large measurement noise
does not generate any unintentional switches. As depicted in Figure 11.4, the output control signal
voltage of the on-off controller can be adjusted using a mean or offset Vh,off and an amplitude
Vh,amp .
In the experiment, the behaviour of the heater system will be investigated for different values of
controller parameters. More specifically, the control signal and the measured temperature will be
observed.

On-Off Control Virtual Instrument

In this laboratory experiment, you will work on tracking a reference temperature using a relay
control. Note that the operating range of the heater is 0 V to 10 V. The LabVIEW™ virtual
instrument for on-off temperature control is shown in Figure 11.5.

Figure 11.5: Virtual instrument for on-off heater control

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Linear Control System Lab Lab12

In-Lab Exercise:-

1. Open the QNET HVAC On-Off.vi. Make sure the correct Device is chosen.
2. In the Signal Generator section set:
• Signal = Square
• Amplitude (◦ C) = 0
• Frequency (Hz) = 0.0
• Setpoint (◦ C) = 50
3. In the Control Parameters section set:
• Vh_amp (V) = 4
• Vh_off (V) = 4
• ∆ Th (◦ C) = 0.25
4. Run the VI and activate the heater by pressing the Heater On/Off control button.
5. Examine the actual temperature (red) and reference temperature (blue) responses in the
Temperature scope. Wait until the the Chamber Temperature is oscillating around the set
point.
6. Vary the relay amplitude Vh_amp in the Control Parameters section between 1 V and 8 V.
Explain how the heater voltage affects the temperature variation and, in particular, observe
the frequency and amplitude of the chamber temperature. Attach a representative
temperature response.
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7. Reset the Control Parameters to:

• Vh_amp (V) = 4
• Vh_off (V) = 4
• ∆ Th (◦ C) = 0.25
8. Vary the relay offset Vh_off in the Control Parameters section between 1 V and 6 V.
Explain the effect of the relay offset for the operation of the relay. In particular, describe
what happens when the relay offset is larger than the relay amplitude.
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 Linear Control System Lab Lab12

9. Reset the Control Parameters to:

• Vh_amp (V) = 4
• Vh_off (V) = 4
• ∆ Th (◦ C) = 0.25
10. Examine the effects of changing the relay width (or hysteresis) ∆Th between 0.01 ◦ C and
1.00 ◦ C. Give a short explanation and attach a temperature response with a narrow and
wide hysteresis.
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11. Click on the Stop button to stop the VI.

Section II: Modelling

The on-off control input and the measured temperature output from the experiment have an
interesting property that makes it possible to find a simple model for the process. The temperature
response is a ramp due a voltage step therefore the temperature is the integral of the voltage. Under
certain conditions, the process can be modelled by the simple transfer function
𝐾𝑣 (1)
𝑃(𝑠) =
𝑠

Where the parameter Kv is the slope of the ramp.

On-Off Control Virtual Instrument

Tracking a reference temperature using a relay control is first examined in this laboratory. Then,
when commanding a fixed reference, the system can be modelled. The LabVIEW™ virtual
instrument for on-off temperature control is shown in Figure 11.8.

In-Lab Exercise: -

1. Open the QNET HVAC On-Off.vi. Make sure the correct Device is chosen.
2. Run the VI and activate the heater by pressing the Heater On/Off button.
3. In the Signal Generator section set:
• Signal = Square
• Amplitude (◦ C) = 0
• Frequency (Hz) = 0.0
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Linear Control System Lab Lab12

• Offset (◦ C) = 50
4. In the Control Parameters section set:
• Vh_amp (V) = 4
• Vh_off (V) = 4
• ∆ Th (◦ C) = 0.25
5. Adjust the Temperature scope scales to see both the reference and actual temperatures.
Wait with the next step until the actual temperature and the reference temperature are
within 2 ◦ C of each other.
6. Observe the heater voltage and the chamber temperature. As discussed in the Background
section, this can be modelled by the simple transfer function ,

𝑇(𝑠) 𝐾𝑣 (2)
𝑃(𝑠) = =
𝑉(𝑠) 𝑠
Find parameter Kv by first adjusting the parameters in the Control Parameters section to
get a symmetric response around the reference signal. Attach both the temperature and
voltage responses used to find Kv and show your calculations.
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7. Click on the Stop button to stop running the VI.

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