Introduction to Control System

ECEG-3153
Chapter 1
Control System Modeling
Compiled By: Mulugeta G.
 Introduction
• A system is a collection, set and arrangements
of elements or sub-systems.
• A control system is an interconnection of
components forming a system configuration
that will provide a desired system response.
• It is an arrangements of physical components
connected in such a manner as to command,
regulate, or govern itself or another system.

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 Cont’d

• A control system is a mechanism which makes a

certain physical variables of a system behaves in
prescribed manner despite uncertainties and
disturbances.
• Stability and performance are the two fundamental
issues in a design, analysis and
evaluation of control system.
• Stability refers to natural response and
performance refers to ability of system to track its
reference input.
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 Cont’d

• When defining control system, there are two

basic terms we need to consider:
 Input: is a stimulus, excitation or command
applied to control system.
 Output: is actual response resulting from a
control system

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 Cont’d

• Examples of control system:

 Home automation
 Automatic traffic light control
 Radar system
 Speed control of DC motor
 Robotic system
 Biomedical System control
 Industrial control system, etc…

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 Basic elements and configurations of
control system
There are two main branches of control systems:

1. Open-loop systems and

2. Closed-loop systems

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 Open-loop systems
• The open-loop system is also called the non-
feedback system.
• In this open-loop system, there is no way to
ensure the actual response is close to the
desired response automatically.

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 Closed-loop systems
• The closed-loop system is also called the feedback
system.
• It has a mechanism to ensure the actual response is
close to the desired response automatically.

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The most common architecture for a
closed loop system

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Basic Terms in Control Systems
• Desired Output/Reference Input: In systems where it
is desired that the output follows the input this signal
sets the desired output level.
• Plant/Process/System: refers to the system we want to
control. It generally refers to a physical process which
we can either model or measure.
• Transducer: The role of the transducer is to convert
the output signal to an equivalent electrical system.
This facilitates the comparison of the output signal to
the input.
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 Cont’d

• Error Signal: This an electrical signal that is the

difference between the desired and true output
signals.
• Controller: This is a purposely designed system to
modify the behavior of the plant.
• Disturbance Input: External/environmental factors
that affect plant behavior.

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 The most important features of Closed Loop
control systems are:
• Increased accuracy: its ability to reproduce the
input accurately.
• Reduced sensitivity of the ratio of output to
input for variations in system characteristics
and other parameters.
• Reduced effects of non linearity.
• Increased bandwidth (bandwidth of a system
that ranges frequencies (input) over which the
system will respond satisfactorily).
• Tendency towards oscillation or instability
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 Transfer Function
• A simpler system or element maybe governed by
first order or second order differential equation.
• In general, a collection of components or system
shall be represented by nth order differential
equation.
• In control systems, transfer function characterizes
the input output relationship of systems that can
be described by Linear Time Invariant Differential
Equation.

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 Cont’d
• Transfer function of a LTI system is defined as
the ratio of the Laplace Transform of the
output variable to the Laplace Transform of the
input variable assuming all the initial condition
as zero.

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 Properties of Transfer Function
• It is the mathematical model expressing the
differential equation that relates the output to
input of the system.
• It is independent of magnitude and the nature of
the input.
• The transfer function includes the transfer
functions of the individual elements.
• But at the same time, it does not provide any
information regarding physical structure of the
system.
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 Steps in determining Transfer
Function
There three basic steps:
1. Write the differential equation of the system.
2. Take the Laplace Transform of the differential
equation, assuming all initial condition to be
zero.
3. Take the ratio of the output to the input. This
ratio is the T. F.

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 Laplace Transform Basics

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 Cont’d

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 Mathematical Model of control
systems
1. Mechanical Translational systems
• The model of mechanical translational systems
can obtain by using three basic elements mass,
spring and dashpot.
• The force acting on a mechanical body is
governed by Newton‘s second law of motion.

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Consider an ideal mass element:

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Consider an ideal frictional element dash-pot:

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Consider an ideal elastic element spring:

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2. Mechanical Rotational Systems

• The model of rotational mechanical systems

can be obtained by using three elements:
 moment of inertia [J] of mass,
 dash pot with rotational frictional coefficient [B]
and
 torsional spring with stiffness[k].
• The torque acting on rotational mechanical
bodies is governed by Newton‘s second law of
motion for rotational systems.

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Torque balance equations of idealized elements
Consider an ideal mass element:

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Consider an ideal frictional element dash pot:

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Consider an ideal elastic element, torsional
spring:

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3. Modeling of electrical system

Steps for modeling of electrical system:

 Apply Kirchhoff‘s voltage law or Kirchhoff‘s
current law to form the differential equations
describing electrical circuits comprising of
resistors, capacitors, and inductors.
 Form Transfer Functions from the describing
differential equations.

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Example for Electrical circuit

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Example of RLC circuit

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 Cont’d
Equation (1) & (2) give a mathematical model of
the circuit. Taking the L.T. of equations (1)&(2),
assuming zero initial conditions, we obtain

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 Transfer function of Electromechanical
systems
• Let us consider armature-controlled DC motor

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• The armature current produces the torque
which is applied to the inertia and friction;
hence

• Rearranging the above equation

• By substituting armature current and back emf

into the armature circuit equation we obtain

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• Consider equivalent mechanical loading on a
motor

• Substituting for Tm we obtain the T.F of DC

motor as shown below:

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 Cont’d

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 Cont’d

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 Analogous Systems
• Let us consider a mechanical (both translational
and rotational) and electrical system as shown
in the figure below.

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 Cont’d

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They are two methods to get analogous system.
1. Force –Voltage Analogy

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2. Force – Current Analog

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 Block Diagram Representation
• A pictorial representation of the functions
performed by each component and the flow of
signals in a system.
• Basic elements of a block diagram:
 Blocks
 Transfer functions of elements inside the blocks
 Summing points
 Take off points
 Arrow

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Blocks
• In a block diagram all system variables are linked to
each other through functional blocks.

Summing point
• Operations of addition and subtraction are
represented by a circle, called a summing point.
• A summing point has only one output and may have
several inputs

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Takeoff Point
• A takeoff point is used to allow a signal to be
used by more than one block or summing
point.

• Branches: lines showing the connection

between the blocks.
• Arrow: associated with each branch to
indicate the direction of flow of signal.
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 Block diagram reduction technique

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• Eliminating a feedback loop

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• Cascaded or Series Subsystems

• Parallel Subsystems

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 Procedure to solve Block Diagram
Reduction Problems
Step 1: Reduce the blocks connected in series
Step 2: Reduce the blocks connected in parallel
Step 3: Reduce the minor feedback loops
Step 4: Try to shift take off points towards right and
Summing point towards left
Step 5: Repeat steps 1 to 4 till simple form is obtained
Step 6: Obtain the Transfer Function of Overall System

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Examples
1. Obtain the Transfer function of the given block
diagram

Combine G1, G2 which are in series

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 Cont’d
The transfer function of the overall system is:

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2. Obtain the transfer function C/R for the block
diagram shown in the fig.

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 Cont’d

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 Cont’d

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Exercise
1. Reduce the following blocks into a single
transfer function C(s)/R(s)

Answer:

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2. Find T(s)=C(s)/R(s)

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 Signal Flow Graph Representation
• A signal-flow graph consists of a network in
which nodes are connected by directed
branches.
• It is an alternative representation to block
diagrams.

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 Basic Elements of a Signal flow graph
• Node: a point representing a signal or variable.
• Branch: unidirectional line segment joining two
nodes.
• Path: a branch or a continuous sequence of branches
that can be traversed from one node to another
node.
• Loop: a closed path that originates and terminates
on the same node and along the path no node is met
twice.
• Non-touching loops: two loops are said to be non-touching if
they do not have a common node

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 Mason’s Rule
• Mason‘s gain rule for the determination of the
overall system gain is given below.

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Example

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 Cont’d
•Non-touching loop two at a time

• Non-touching loop three at a time

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Exercise
• Find T.F via Mason’s gain rule

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