Northern Border University

Faculty of Engineering
Electrical Engineering Departement

Principles of
Principles of Automatic
Automatic Control
Control

Dr. Yahia SAID

Assistant Professor in Electrical Engineering
Course Syllabus (ABET EC-2000)

 Course name: Principles of Automatic Control

 Course number: 1402-340
 Instructor’s name: Dr Yahia SAID
 Text book: Modern Control Engineering, K. Ogata, 5th edition,
Pearson, 2010
 References:
 F. Golnarghi, B.C. Kuo, Automatic Control Systems, 9 th
edition, Wiley, 2010
 R.S. Burns, Advanced Control Engineering, 1st edition,
Oxford, 2001
 Prerequisities: 1402 201, 1402 203

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Course Syllabus (continued)
 Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs)
After finishing the course successfully, the student should be able to
1. recognize the mathematical background related to the automatic
control systems
2. apply the theory of Signal Flow Graphs using Mason’s gain
formula to find the system transfer functions
3. develop simpler block diagrams by using rules of simplification
4. synthesis industrial controllers to design feedback control
systems, and the impact of these circuits on economic
5. analyze the stability of linear control systems using algebraic
methods
6. analyze the performance of controlled systems in the time
domain

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Course Syllabus (continued)

 Course topics

 Introduction
 Mathematical background
 Transfer functions and block diagrams
 Modeling of physical systems
 Synthesis of controllers for linear systems
 Stability analysis of linear control systems
 Performances study of linear control systems

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PLAN

CHAPTER 1
Introduction to Automatic
Control Systems

1. Define the objective of control systems

2. Explain the importance of control systems
3. Introduce the basic components of a control system
4. Give some examples of control-system applications
5. Explain the importance of the feedback control
6. Introduce different types of control systems
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Objectives of the Automatic Control Systems

In our daily lives there are many "objectives" that need to be

accomplished.

 In the domestic domain: we need to regulate the temperature

and humidity of homes and buildings for comfortable living.

 For transportation: we need to control the automobile and

airplane to go from one point to another accurately and safely.

 Industrially: manufacturing processes contain numerous

objectives for products that will satisfy the precision and cost
effectiveness requirements.

The means of achieving these "objectives" usually involve the

use of control systems that implement certain control
strategies.

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Importance of the control systems

Nowadays, control systems have assumed an increasingly important

role in the development of modern technology.
Practically every aspect of our day-to-day activities is affected by
some types of control systems.
Control systems are found in abundance in all sectors of industry,
such as:

 Electrical systems,
 Power system,
 Transportation systems,
 Computer control,
 Robotics,
 Nanotechnology,
 and many others.

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Basic components of a control system
The basic ingredients of a control system can be described by
1. Objectives of control
2. Control-system components
3. Results or outputs

 The objectives can be identified with inputs or actuating signals

 The results are also called outputs or controlled variables
 The elements of the control system are used so that the output of the
control system converges to the inputs with good performances.

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Examples of control-system applications
Idle speed control of an automobile

Figure 1. Idle-speed control system.

The objective of the idle-speed control of an automobile engine is to maintain
the engine idle speed at a relatively low value (for fuel economy) regardless of
the applied engine loads (e.g., air conditioning, power steering, etc). Without the
idle-speed control, any sudden engine-load application would cause a drop in
engine speed that might cause the engine to stall. Thus the main objectives of
the idle-speed control system are:
1. to eliminate or minimize the speed drop when engine loading is applied
2. to maintain the engine idle speed at a desired value 9
Examples of control-system applications

The following figure shows the block diagram of the idle-speed control
system from the standpoint of inputs-system-outputs.
In this case, the throttle angle  and the load torque TL (due to the
application of air conditioning, power steering, transmission, or power
brakes, etc.) are the inputs, and the engine speed  is the output. The
engine is the controlled process of the system.

Figure 2. Block diagram of the Idle-speed control system.

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Examples of control-system applications

Solar controlled field

Figure 3. Solar collector field 11

Examples of control-system applications

Many efforts related to research and solar power conversion methods have been
developed in the world, including the solar-cell conversion techniques. In most of
these systems, the need for high efficiencies dictates the use of devices for sun
tracking. Figure 3 shows a solar collector field used for this aim.

Figure 4, shows a design method of efficient water extraction using solar power.
During the hours of daylight, the solar collector would produce electricity to pump
water from the underground water to a reservoir and in the early morning hours, the
water would be released into the irrigation system.

One of the most important features of the solar collector is that the collector dish
must track the sun accurately. Therefore, the movement of the collector dish must
be controlled by sophisticated control systems.

The block diagram of Figure 5 describes the sun-tracking system. The controller
ensures that the tracking collector is pointed toward the sun in the morning and sends a
control signal. The controller constantly calculates the sun's rate during the day. The
controller uses the sun rate and sun sensor information as inputs to generate proper
motor commands to slew the collector.
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Examples of control-system applications

Figure 4. Design method of efficient water extraction using solar power.

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Examples of control-system applications

Figure 5. Important components of the sun-tracking control system.

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Open-loop control system (non feedback systems)

The elements of an open-loop control system can usually be divided into two
parts: the controller and the controlled process, as shown by the block
diagram of Figure 6. An input signal r (reference, set point, input) is applied
to the controller, whose output u acts the controlled process to derive the
controlled variable y.

In simple cases, the controller can be an amplifier, a filter or other control

elements, depending on the nature of the system. In more sophisticated
cases, the controller can be a computer such as a microcontroller, DSP or
other. Note that the open-loop control is simpler and economic but it is not
robust against perturbations.

Figure 6. Elements of an open-loop control system.

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Closed-loop control system (feedback-control system)

What is missing in the open-loop control system for more accurate and more
adaptive control is a link or feedback from the output to the input of the
system. To obtain more accurate control, the controlled signal y should be fed
back and compared with the reference yr or desired input, and an actuating
signal proportional to the difference of the input and the output must be sent
through the system to correct the error. A system with one or more feedback
paths such as that just described is called a closed-loop system.

Figure 7. Block diagram of a closed-loop control system.

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Performances comparison (Open
Open and closed loop controls)

Figure 8. (a) Typical response of the open-loop idle-speed control system.

Figure 8. (b) Typical response of the closed-loop idle-speed control system.

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Block diagrams of control systems

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Closed-loop versus open-loop control systems
Advantages
 Closed-loop control systems due to the use of feedback make
the system response relatively insensitive to external
disturbances and internal variations in system parameters.
 The open-loop control system is not robust either to external or
to internal disturbances.
 Stability is may be not ensured in the open-loop control
systems, whereas stability is more often ensured in the closed-
loop control systems.
 Good performances (rapidity, precision,...)

Drawbacks
 The closed-loop control is more complex than the open-loop
one
 The cost of the closed-loop control system is more important
than the cost of the open-loop one 19
Application areas of control engineering

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Closed-loop digital control system

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Most used sensors in control systems

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Most used actuators in control systems

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What is a control ? A real life example (1)

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What is a control ? A real life example (2)

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How to design a control system

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