MODULE 3

COMPUTER CONTROLLED
SYSTEMS
BLOCK DIAGRAM OF CPC
APPLICATION
COMPUTER CONTROLLED SYSTEMS

• Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs)

• Distributed Control Systems (DCS)

• Supervisory control and Data Acquisition (SCADA)

 Direct digital control (DDC)
• In DDC a digital computer develops control signals that directly operate the
control devices .

• In supervisory control, a digital computer generates signals used as

reference (set-point) values for conventional Analog controllers.

• Both options were offered by earlier generations of the DCS.

DDC
Centralized control architecture
Sensor Actuator
processes processor

System controller

Fault
Computarised User interface handler
process
De-centralized process control architecture
High level
operator console

Supervisory Computer

controller controller controller

I/O I/O I/O

PROCESS
 Concept of Supervisory Control
• Early systems were simple telemetry, with communication in one direction, from
field to control room.
• They still required that an operator be dispatched to the field site to adjust the
pressure or to turn a motor on or off.
• The problem was that, although the communication system could reach a long
distance, there was nothing available at the remote site that was capable of
understanding and remembering any instructions.
• Now the operator, sitting in a control room, could supervise the process by
monitoring the positions of switches and sending instructions to something at the
site to open and close relays. That “something,” which later became known as an
RTU (remote terminal unit), was doing the actual control because it was
hardwired to the relay.
Data Acquisition System Block Diagram
MULTI CHANNEL DATA
ACQUISITION SYSTEM
 Transducers

Data acquisition systems have multiple components that work together to

gather and process information. They can be used to analyze information
regarding physical phenomena, such as temperature, voltage, and
pressure. However, because temperature, voltage, and pressure are all
distinct different, they require different systems of measurement and
representation. In data acquisition systems, a transducer serves as the
component that translates raw data into a comprehensible electrical signal.
When a data acquisition system uses DAQ (data acquisition hardware) the
transducer also functions as a sensor, gathering the data from which it will
then generate a signal. As a result of all the different variables data
acquisition systems can measure, there are several kinds of transducers. A
transducer must be capable of generating different signals depending on
the particular phenomenon measured. Two general types of signals
commonly are used: analog and digital.
 Transducers and Actuators

A transducer converts temperature, pressure, level, length, position, etc.

into voltage, current, frequency, pulses or other signals.
An actuator is a device that activates process control equipment by using
pneumatic, hydraulic or electrical power. For example, a valve actuator
opens and closes a valve to control fluid rate.
 Signal Conditioning

Signal conditioning circuits improve the quality of signals generated by

transducers before they are converted into digital signals by the PC's data-
acquisition hardware.
Examples of signal conditioning are signal scaling, amplification,
linearization, cold-junction compensation, filtering, attenuation, excitation,
common-mode rejection, and so on.
One of the most common signal conditioning functions is amplification.
For maximum resolution the voltage range of the input signals should
be approximately equal to the maximum input range of the A/D
converter.
Amplification expands the range of the transducer signals so that they
match the input range of the A/D converter. For example, a x 10
amplifier maps transducer signals which range from 0 to 1 V onto the
range 0 to 10 V before they go into the A/D converter.

http://www.pacificinstruments.com/images/6100%20Signal%20Conditioning%20Config.png
 Signal Conditioning

Electrical signals are conditioned so they can be used by an analog

input board.
The following features may be available:
 Amplification
 Isolation
Filtering
Linearization
 Data Acquisition
Data acquisition and control hardware generally performs one or more of
the following functions:
•analog input,
•analog output,
•digital input,
•digital output and
•counter/timer functions.
 Analog Inputs (A/D)
An analog input converts a voltage level into a digital value that can be
stored and processed in a computer. Why would you want to measure
voltages? There are a multitude of sensors available which convert things
like temperature, pressure, etc. into voltages. The voltages can then be
easily measured by various kinds of hardware, such as a LabJack U3-HV,
and then read into a computer. The computer can then convert the voltage
value into it's original type (temperature, pressure, etc) and the value can
then be stored in a file, emailed to someone, or used to control something
else outside of the computer.
The most significant criteria when selecting A/D hardware are:
1. Number of input channels
2. Single-ended or differential input signals
3. Sampling rate (in samples per second)
4. Resolution (usually measured in bits of resolution)
5. Input range (specified in full-scale volts)
6. Noise and nonlinearity
 Analog to Digital (A/D) Converter
An Analog to Digital Converter (ADC) is a very useful feature
that converts an analog voltage on a pin to a digital number.
By converting from the analog world to the digital world, we
can begin to use electronics to interface to the analog world
around us.

Not every pin on a microcontroller has the ability to do analog to digital

conversions. On the Arduino board, these pins have an ‘A’ in front of their
label (A0 through A5) to indicate these pins can read analog voltages.

ADCs can vary greatly between microcontroller. The ADC on the Arduino
is a 10-bit ADC meaning it has the ability to detect 1,024 (210) discrete
analog levels.
Some microcontrollers have 8-bit ADCs (28 = 256 discrete levels) and
some have 16-bit ADCs (216 = 65,535 discrete levels).
 A/D Converter:Sampling Rate
Sampling rate is the speed at which the digitizer’s
ADC converts the input signal, after the signal has
passed through the analog input path, to digital
values. Hence, the digitizer samples the signal
after any attenuation, gain, and/or filtering has
been applied by the analog input path, and
4 Samples/cycle converts the resulting waveform to digital
representation. The sampling rate of a high-speed
digitizer is based on the sample clock that
controls when the ADC converts the
instantaneous analog voltage to digital values
16 Samples/cycle
8 Samples/cycle
Analog
Input
 A/D Converter

Effective rate of each individual channel is inversely proportional to the number

of channels sampled.
Example:
• 100 KHz maximum.
• 16 channels.
100 KHz/16 = 6.25 KHz per channel.
 A/D Converter:Range
Dynamic range is often a key parameter within signal processing systems
and a shortfall can limit the quality and range of signals that can be
received. The technical progress made on improving this gateway between
the analogue and digital world has not kept pace with Moore's law because
the challenges are more fundamental than simply reducing transistor sizes.
Methods to increase a/d converter dynamic range are therefore always of
interest, although each solution often suits particular applications.
A/D Converter: Resolution
 Analog Outputs (D/A)

An analog output is a measurable electrical signal with a defined range that

is generated by a controller and sent to a controlled device, such as a
variable speed drive or actuator.
Changes in the analog output cause changes in the controlled device that
result in changes in the controlled process.

Controller output digital to analog circuitry is typically limited to a single

range of voltage or current, such that output transducers are required to
provide an output signal that is compatible with controlled devices using
something other than the controller's standard signal.

Common Types:There are four common types of analog outputs; voltage,

current, resistance and pneumatic.
Analog Outputs (D/A)
 SCADA=Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition

• SCADA (Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition) system refers to the combination of
telemetry and data acquisition.

• Control technology developed for controlling geographically large processes.

• It consists of collecting information, transferring it back to a central site, carrying

out necessary analysis and control, and then displaying this data on a number of
operator screens.

• SCADA system is used to monitor and control a plant or equipment.

• Control may be automatic or can be initiated by operator commands.

 SCADA system types
Three types of basic SCADA systems:

 Basic SCADA
 One machine process
 One RTU and MTU

 Integrated SCADA
 Multiple RTUs
 DCS

 Networked SCADA
 Multiple SCADA
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 Basic SCADA

Car manufacturing robot

 Room temperature control

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Integrated SCADA

 Water systems
 Subway systems
 Security systems

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Networked SCADA

 Power systems
 Communication systems

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Four levels of SCADA system

 Level IV - Enterprise
 Corporate LAN/WAN
 World Wide Web
 Virtual Private Network
 Firewall for remote users
 Level III – SCADA / MTU
 Operator Workstations
 Control
 Engineering Workstations
 Servers – Data logging 35
Four levels of SCADA system

 Level II – Telecommunication
 Fiber
 Radio
 Telephone leased line
 Protocols
 Level I – Field
 Devices
 RTUs / PLCs
 Sensors
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SCADA system manufacturers

 Modular SCADA, UK
Motorola
 Rockwell Automation
 Honeywell
 ABB
 Siemens

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SCADA Hardware manufacturers

 Rockwell Allen Bradley

 General Electric (GE)
 Emerson
 Schneider Electric
Honeywell
 ABB
 Siemens

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 SCADA Applications

• Water and Wastewater

• Power
• Oil and Gas
• Research facilities
• Transportation
• Security systems
• Siren systems
• Irrigation
• Communication control
• Aerospace
• Bottling and Canning
• Chemicals Plants
• Petroleum, Petrochemical
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