2/7/2020 Control Systems - Signal Flow Graphs - Tutorialspoint
Control Systems - Signal Flow Graphs
Signal flow graph is a graphical representation of algebraic equations. In this chapter, let us discuss the
basic concepts related signal flow graph and also learn how to draw signal flow graphs.
Basic Elements of Signal Flow Graph
Nodes and branches are the basic elements of signal flow graph.
Node
Node is a point which represents either a variable or a signal. There are three types of nodes — input
node, output node and mixed node.
Input Node − It is a node, which has only outgoing branches.
Output Node − It is a node, which has only incoming branches.
Mixed Node − It is a node, which has both incoming and outgoing branches.
Example
Let us consider the following signal flow graph to identify these nodes.
The nodes present in this signal flow graph are y1, y2, y3 and y4.
y1 and y4 are the input node and output node respectively.
y2 and y3 are mixed nodes.
Branch
Branch is a line segment which joins two nodes. It has both gain and direction. For example, there are
four branches in the above signal flow graph. These branches have gains of a, b, c and -d.
Construction of Signal Flow Graph
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Let us construct a signal flow graph by considering the following algebraic equations −
y
y2 = a 12 y
2 = a12 y1 + a 42 y
1 + a42 y44
y
y3 = a 23 y
3 = a23 y2 + a 53 y
2 + a53 y55
y
y4 = a 34 y
4 = a34 y33
y
y5 = a 45 y
5 = a45 y4 + a 35 y
4 + a35 y33
y
y6 = a 56 y
6 = a56 y55
There will be six nodes (y1, y2, y3, y4, y5 and y6) and eight branches in this signal flow graph. The gains
of the branches are a12, a23, a34, a45, a56, a42, a53 and a35.
To get the overall signal flow graph, draw the signal flow graph for each equation, then combine all these
signal flow graphs and then follow the steps given below −
Step 1 − Signal flow graph for y
y2 = a 13 y
2 = a13 y1 + a 42 y
1 + a42 y44
is shown in the following figure.
Step 2 − Signal flow graph for y
y3 = a 23 y
3 = a23 y2 + a 53 y
2 + a53 y55
is shown in the following figure.
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Step 3 − Signal flow graph for y
y4 = a 34 y
4 = a34 y33
is shown in the following figure.
Step 4 − Signal flow graph for y
y5 = a 45 y
5 = a45 y4 + a 35 y
4 + a35 y33
is shown in the following figure.
Step 5 − Signal flow graph for y
y66
=
= a
a56 y5
56 y5
is shown in the following figure.
Step 6 − Signal flow graph of overall system is shown in the following figure.
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Conversion of Block Diagrams into Signal Flow Graphs
Follow these steps for converting a block diagram into its equivalent signal flow graph.
Represent all the signals, variables, summing points and take-off points of block diagram as
nodes in signal flow graph.
Represent the blocks of block diagram as branches in signal flow graph.
Represent the transfer functions inside the blocks of block diagram as gains of the branches in
signal flow graph.
Connect the nodes as per the block diagram. If there is connection between two nodes (but there
is no block in between), then represent the gain of the branch as one. For example, between
summing points, between summing point and takeoff point, between input and summing point,
between take-off point and output.
Example
Let us convert the following block diagram into its equivalent signal flow graph.
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Represent the input signal R
R((s
s)) and output signal C
C((s
s)) of block diagram as input node R
R((s
s))
and output node C
C((s
s)) of signal flow graph.
Just for reference, the remaining nodes (y1 to y9) are labelled in the block diagram. There are nine nodes
other than input and output nodes. That is four nodes for four summing points, four nodes for four take-off
points and one node for the variable between blocks G
G11
and G
G22
.
The following figure shows the equivalent signal flow graph.
With the help of Mason’s gain formula (discussed in the next chapter), you can calculate the transfer
function of this signal flow graph. This is the advantage of signal flow graphs. Here, we no need to simplify
(reduce) the signal flow graphs for calculating the transfer function.
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