UNIT – 01

Introduction and Mathematical Modeling to

Control Systems

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Introduction

• Engineering can be defined as the art of putting together elements, natural or manufactured, so as
to get the optimum conversion of resources for the benefit of mankind. Control engineering can be
viewed as study of behavior of such built-up systems subjected to control actions.
• A system can be natural, man-made or combination of the two.
• In modern times, control systems playa very important role in our daily life. The concepts of
automatic control are fundamental and well mixed in every aspect our life touches. From a simple
bread toaster to a complex modern power plant, there is a series of control principles that affect our
life.
• Practically an engineer has to deal with systems in any industry he / she lands in, and so it is
necessary to be familiar with the analysis and design aspects of modern control systems. One must
be aware that the principles of control theory are applicable to engineering as well as non-
engineering fields. Also, control engineering can be associated with general engineering,
biological, sociological, organizational, defense, etc.

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Definitions

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• Control: It means to regulate, direct or command a system so that the desired objective is attained.

• Input: The stimulus or excitation applied to a control system from an external source in order to
produce the output is called input.

• Output: The actual response obtained from a system is called output.

• Plant: It is the body or process or machine whose particular quantity or condition is controlled.

• System: A system is an arrangement of or a combination of different physical components

connected or related in such a manner as to form an entire unit to accomplish an objective for some
input(s).
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• Control System: It is an arrangement of different physical elements connected in such a manner so
as to regulate, direct or command it-self to achieve a certain objective (or command some other
system to achieve a certain objective)

Thus a control system must have the following:

• (i) An input or inputs; (ii) An output or outputs; (iii) An arrangement to process and achieve the
input-output objective

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Types of control systems

Control action is the actuating signal that is responsible for stimulating the plant / process to produce
the output
Depending on whether such a control action is dependent on the output or not, control systems are
categorized as:
(a) Open loop systems (b) Closed loop systems.

Open Loop System:

Definition: A system in which the control action is totally independent of the output of the system is
called as open loop system. Open systems are calibrated systems and the control action is equal to the
input.

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Examples of Open Loop System:
• Automatic hand drier; automatic washing machine; bread toaster; automatic(Nescafe) coffee
server; automatic milk server; electric lift; traffic signals.

Advantages of open loop systems:

1. Contains less number of components
2. They are simple in construction and design.
3. They are economical.
4. Easy for maintenance.
5. Not much problems of stability

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Disadvantages of open loop systems:
1. Output could be inaccurate and unreliable because accuracy is dependent on accuracy of
calibration.
2. Inaccurate results are obtained with system parameter variations, internal & external disturbances.
3. To maintain better accuracy, recalibration of the controller is necessary from time to time.

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Closed Loop System:
Definition: A system in which the control action is somehow dependent on the output is called as
closed loop system

There is a comparison of the output and reference input state. This property is known as feedback and
this is the main difference when compared to the open loop systems.

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• The comparison between reference input r (t) and feedback b (t) gives the error e (t). When
feedback signal is positive, system is called Positive feedback System and e (t) = r (t) + b (t). When
feedback signal is negative, system is called as Negative feedback System and e (t) = r (t) - b (t).

• This error is applied to the controller which gives the activating signal m (t) for the process. (In
many cases the controller may contain more than one block in series so as to achieve necessary
power amplification and compensation to drive the process).

• The action of the controller will be to drive the controlled output in such a manner that the error is
reduced to zero i.e. the feedback signal is equal to reference input r (t).

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Important terms in closed loop system

• Command Input: The command is the input signal, which corresponds to the desired output,
given to the reference transducer
• Reference Transducer: The transducer which generates a reference input when a command signal
is given to it.
• Reference Input r(t): It is an external signal applied to a feedback control system in order to
obtain a specific action from the system
• Primary Feedback Signal b(t): It is the signal proportional to controlled output c(t)and is
algebraically summed with reference input r(t) to get the error signal e(t ).
• Error Signal: It is the signal obtained by algebraic sum of reference input signal and primary
feedback signal, i, e. r(t) ± b(t).
• Controller: It the unit which produces the manipulated output based on the control scheme and
error signal.

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• Manipulated Variable: The output of the controller is the manipulated variable that controls the
output of plant
• Plant: It is the body or process or machine whose particular quantity or condition is controlled
• Disturbance: It is an undesired input e.g. noise.
• Controlled Output: It is the output of the plant / process to be controlled.
• Feedback Element: It is the transducer that produces feedback signal b(t) proportional to
controlled output c(t)
• Forward Path: It is the transmission path from the actuating signal to the controlled output
• Feedback Path: It is the transmission path from the controlled output to the primary feedback
signal b(t)

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Examples of Closed Loop System

• Automatic electric iron; DC motor speed controlled by tachometer feedback; railway reservation
status display; missile launched and auto-tracked by radar; Servo voltage stabilizer; human
perspiration system; sun-seeker solar systems; water level controller

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Automatic Electric Iron

• An Automatic Electric Iron regulates the temperature of iron such that for a given cloth selection
the temperature remains in a specified range. When the temperature falls below the lower limit,
heating is started and when it exceeds the upper limit heating is stopped. Thus it is closed loop with
respect to temperature as the control action (which initiates heating or not heating the coil) depends
on the output temperature. This is the principle of closed loop temperature control.
• In simple electric iron systems bimetallic strips are used but in sophisticated systems, the feedback
transducer could be a thermocouple or remote temperature detecting device or some similar device.

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Perspiration

• When the body temperature goes up, we perspire. Body heat is used to evaporate the sweat and our
temperature falls as a result. Hence our body maintains constant skin temperature and is closed
loop system.

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Feedback

There is a comparison of the output and reference input state. This property is known as feedback and
this is the main difference when compared to the open loop systems.
When feedback is given the error between system input and output is reduced. However
improvement of error is not the only advantage.

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Effects of Feedback

(1) Gain is altered by a factor 1 / 1 +G H

(2) Reduction of the effect of parameter variation by a factor 1 + G H
(3) Improvement in sensitivity.
(4) Stability may be affected
• Points (1) and (4) are disadvantages that can be overcome by gain amplification and good design
respectively.

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Advantages and Disadvantages of Closed Loop System
Advantages:
(i) Accuracy is very high as any error arising is corrected.
(ii) It senses changes in output due to environmental or parametric changes, internal disturbances etc.
and corrects the same.
(iii) Reduced effect of nonlinearity
(iv) High Bandwidth.
(v) Facilitates Automation.
Disadvantages:
(i) Complicated in design
(ii) More number of components and hence expensive
(iii)Maintenance is expensive.
(iv)System may become unstable.
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A table of comparison of open and closed loop systems
S. No Open Loop System Closed Loop System
1 No feedback Hence feedback elements Feedback exists. Hence feedback elements
absent. exist.
2 No error detector Error detector is present
3 Total number of components are less Total number of components are more
4 Its inaccuracy depends on calibration It is accurate (Continuous error correction
accuracy occurs)
5 Highly sensitive to changes in plant Less sensitive to changes in plant
parameters, operating environment and to parameters, operating environment and to
disturbances. disturbances.
6 Small bandwidth. Large bandwidth
7 Stable May become unstable.
8 Simple to construct and cheap. Hence Complicated to design and build hence
ownership cost and maintenance costs are ownership cost and maintenance costs are
low high
9 Typical Examples: Coffee maker automatic Typical Examples: Guided missile,
toaster, hand drier, etc. Temperature control of oven, Perspiration,
Servo voltage stabilizers, etc.

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Requirements of an Ideal Control System
Control systems are always designed for a specific purpose. To achieve the required objective, a good
control system must satisfy the following requirements.
1) Accuracy: A good control system must be highly accurate. It should operate with as little error
as possible. The open loop systems are generally less accurate and hence feedback is deliberately
introduced to reduce the error in the system. Such closed loop system requires a design so that steady
state error tends to zero.

2) Sensitivity: (Sensitivity in the present context is the minimum magnitude of input signal required
to produce a specified output signal, for example, sensitivity of a transducer is the relationship
between input and output power)
Sensitivity requirements often play an important role in the design of control systems. All physical
elements have properties that change with environment and age and the parameters of control
systems cannot be considered to be constant over the entire operating life of the system e.g. the
winding resistance of motor changes with respect to time. A good control system should be very
insensitive to such parameter variations but sensitive to the input commands. It requires that, its
performance should not be affected by small changes in the certain parameters of the system.
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3) External disturbance or noise: (can be internal or external) All the physical systems are
subjected to external disturbances and noise signals; during operation. Brush and commutator noise
in motors, thermal noise voltage in electronic circuits are good examples of noise while effect of
wind on performance of antenna is a good example of external disturbance. A requirement of a
good control system is that the system is insensitive to noise and external disturbances but
sensitive to the input commands. It should be able to reduce the effects of undesirable disturbances.

4) Stability: A concept of stability means output of system must follow reference input and must
produce bounded output for bounded input. However due to wrong selection of parameters it is
possible that output tends to increase without bounds. This is called as unstable condition. A good
control system is one which is inherently stable in nature.

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5) Bandwidth: This requirement is related to the frequency response of the system. For the input
frequency range, it should give satisfactory output. The frequency range for which output is
satisfactory is its bandwidth. The satisfactory output means maximum possible output without
overshoots and it should not change with input frequency in given range. A good control system
should be having fairly large bandwidth.
6) Speed: A system should have good speed of response. This means output of the system should
approach to its desired value as quickly as possible. This is measured in terms of its rise time and
settling time. System should settle down to its final value as quickly as possible.
7) Oscillations: The good control system should exhibit suitable damping i.e. the controlled
output should follow the changes in the reference input without unduly large oscillations or
overshoots.
In general a good control system should be (i) accurate, (ii) reliable, (iii) stable, (iv) fast acting,
(v) insensitive to parameter variations, (vi) insensitive to disturbance inputs, but (vii) sensitive
to changes input.
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Review of Complex Variables and Laplace Transforms

• The Laplace transform method is an operational method that can be used advantageously for
solving linear differential equations.
• By use of Laplace transforms, we can convert many common functions, such as sinusoidal
functions, damped sinusoidal functions, and exponential functions, into algebraic functions of a
complex variable s.
• Operations such as differentiation and integration can be replaced by algebraic operations in the
complex plane.
• Thus, a linear differential equation can be transformed into an algebraic equation in a complex
variable s.
• An advantage of the Laplace transform method is that it allows the use of graphical techniques for
predicting the system performance without actually solving system differential equations.
• Another advantage of the Laplace transform method is that, when we solve the differential
equation, both the transient component and steady-state component of the solution can be obtained
simultaneously.
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Complex Variable: A complex number has a real part and an imaginary part, both of which are
constant. If the real part and/or imaginary part are variables, a complex quantity is called a complex
variable.
In the Laplace transformation we use the notation s as a complex variable that is, s = σ + jω where σ
is the real part and ω is the imaginary part.

Complex Function: A complex function G(s) a function of s, has a real part and an imaginary part
where Gx and Gy, are real quantities.
G(s) = Gx + jGy

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• Points in the s plane at which the function G(s) is analytic are called ordinary points, while points
in the s plane at which the function G(s) is not analytic are called singular points.
• Singular points at which the function G(s) or its derivatives approach infinity are called poles.
• Singular points at which the function G(s) equals zero are called zeros.

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Example

Here, G(s) has zeros at s = -2, s = -10, simple poles at s = 0, s = -1, s = -5, and a double pole
(multiple pole of order 2) at s = -15.

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• If poles are located on the left half of the s – plane, whether real or complex conjugate the system
will be stable, i.e. the response will attain a steady state value, in an aperiodic manner or in an
oscillatory manner.
• If poles are located on the imaginary axis, with zero real part and complex conjugate the system
will be marginally stable, i.e. the response will result in sustained oscillations.
• If both real part and imaginary parts are zero, i.e. s = 0, the system will exhibit step kind of
response and multiple pole at the origin will result in unstable response.
• If poles are located on the right half of the s – plane, whether real or complex conjugate the system
will be unstable, i.e. the response will steadily grow in an aperiodic manner or in an oscillatory
manner.

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LAPLACE TRANSFORMATION

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Laplace Transform Pairs Table

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Inverse Laplace Transformation

• As noted earlier, the inverse Laplace transform can be obtained by use of the inversion integral.
• However, the inversion integral is complicated and, therefore, its use is not recommended for
finding inverse Laplace transforms of commonly encountered functions in control engineering. A
convenient method for obtaining inverse Laplace transforms is to use a table of Laplace transforms.
• In this case, the Laplace transform must be in a form immediately recognizable in such a table.
Quite often the function in question may not appear in tables of Laplace transforms available to the
engineer. If a particular transform F(s) cannot be found in a table, then we may expand it into
partial fractions and write F(s) in terms of simple functions of s for which the inverse Laplace
transforms are already known.

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Problem-1

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• For complicated functions with denominators involving higher-order polynomials, partial-
fraction expansion may be quite time consuming. In such a case, use of MATLAB is
recommended.

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s – plane representation of roots of system characteristic
equation
The characteristic equation in polynomial form is expressed as follows:
a0 sn + a1 sn-1 + a2 sn-2 + ….+an-1 s + an = 0

There will be n roots having only real part or complex conjugate pairs or both.

While plotting the roots on the complex plane the point to be noted is that the graduation along X –
axis and Y – axis should be equal.
• The roots are plotted on the s – plane which is a complex plane.

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Typically considering the points
• s1 = + jω1 s2 = -jω1 s3 = -σ1 + jω2 s4 = -σ1 – jω2 s5 = +σ2 + jω s6 = +σ2 – jω s7 = -σ3 s8 =
-σ4

• Typical plot is as follows

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Mathematical Modeling of Dynamic Systems

• To study and analyze the behavior of a system, it is necessary to have some type of equivalent
representation of the system. Such representation can be obtained from the mathematical equations
governing the behavior of the system. Since control systems under study are dynamic in nature, the
response of which are evolving with time, most of such mathematical equations are differential
equations and the system may be mechanical, electrical, thermal, hydraulic, etc.
• Thus, the set of mathematical equations describing the dynamic behavior of a system is called
mathematical model of the system. (Algebraic, ODE, PDE, Difference Equation)

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Mechanical Systems

Mechanical Systems are of two types:

• Translational
• Rotational
In translational motion, the motion of the body is along a straight line or curved path. In rotational
motion, the motion of the body is that it rotates about its own axis.

Mechanics of Translational Motion:

There are three elements here:
• Mass
• Spring and Damper.

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The relation is F displacement, F = K x = K (x1 - x2) where K is the spring constant

When the force is applied at end A, it gets a displacement x1 and the end B gets a displacement x2, when
both ends are free to move, and the force is proportional to the net displacement (x1 - x2).

In Laplace transformed domain: F(s) = K (X1(s) – X2(s))

If force is applied at B end, the relation is F = K (x2 – x1)

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Modeling of Electrical Systems

Similar to the three basic elements associated with mechanical systems, there are three basic elements
in electrical systems as well and they are:

• Resistor
• Inductor
• Capacitor

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Transfer Function

• Mathematically, it is defined as the ratio of Laplace transform (for definition and transform pairs of
Laplace Transform refer to appropriate standard Mathematics text books) of output (response) of
the system to the Laplace transform of input (excitation or driving function), under the assumption
that all initial conditions are zero.

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Advantages and Features of Transfer Function

• It gives mathematical models of all system components and hence of the overall system. Individual
analysis of various components is also possible by the transfer function approach.
• As it uses a Laplace transform approach, it converts time domain equations to algebraic
equations.
• It gives an operational method of expressing equations which relate output to input.
• The transfer function is expressed only as a function of the complex variable 's'. It is not a function
of the real variable, time or any other variable used as the independent variable.

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• It is the property and characteristics of the system itself. Its value is dependent on the
parameters of the system and independent of the values of the inputs. It helps in calculating
the output for any type of input applied to the system.
• Once transfer function is known, output response for any type of reference input can be calculated.
• It helps in determining the important information about the system i.e. poles, zeros,
characteristic equation etc.
• It helps in the stability analysis of the system.
• The system differential equation can be easily obtained by replacing variable 's' by d/dt.

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Disadvantages (Limitations)

• The few limitations of the transfer function approach called approach are,
• Only applicable to linear time invariant systems.
• It does not provide any information concerning the physical structure system. From transfer
function, physical nature of the system whether electrical, mechanical, thermal or hydraulic, cannot
be judged.
• Effects arising due to initial conditions are totally neglected. Hence initial conditions lose their
importance.

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Example

Obtain the transfer functions X1(s) / U(s) and X2(s) / U(s) of the mechanical system shown in the
figure below

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Taking the Laplace transforms of these two equations, assuming zero initial conditions, we obtain:

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Problem

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Modelling of Thermal Systems

Typically, we will be dealing with liquid heating system in our thermal system modeling. Such a
system is shown in the following figure.

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Problem

A simple gas filled thermometer has a thermal conductance of B is filled with a gas whose thermal
capacitance is C. Obtain the TF relating the temperature of the gas in the thermometer to the
temperature of the medium in which the thermometer is inserted. (Refer the fig shown below).
Neglect the capillary effect of the thermometer tube.

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• Let x = deviation of temperature of the medium

• Let y = deviation of temperature of the gas inside the thermometer

• Rate of heat supplied by the medium to the thermometer = Heat energy gained by the gas inside the
thermometer

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Thank you

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