SCO-21306 Control Engineering

Course

Credits 6.00

Teaching methodContact hours
Lectures30
Practical extensively supervised30
Practical intensively supervised12
Tutorial30
Course coordinator(s)dr. ir. AJB van Boxtel
dr. RJC van Ooteghem
Lecturer(s)dr. RJC van Ooteghem
dr. ir. AJB van Boxtel
Examiner(s)dr. RJC van Ooteghem
dr. ir. AJB van Boxtel

Language of instruction:

English

Assumed knowledge on:

MAT-14903 and MAT-15003, BPE-10806 Process Engineering for Technologists, SCO-20306 Modelling Dynamic Systems

Contents:

Besides a correct design or layout, good control systems are essential to guarantee that production systems operate and produce according the desired specifications. This course gives an introduction to classical and modern control engineering approaches and discusses the standard methods and tools that are usually applied. The methods discussed in the course have a very wide application area. Examples are greenhouse climate, bioreactors, food production, robotics, environmental systems etc. This makes that the course fits in the curricula of several studies.
The course starts with a refresher on dynamic models of systems represented by differential equations. These differential equations will be solved by transformation to the Laplace domain. The system representation in the Laplace domain by transfer functions offers several new possibilities to interpret and to analyse the characteristics of systems and to design controllers.
Classical control is discussed and analysed for the PID controller family. Controller tuning, stability and performance are central items to qualify the controllers, and methods to find these qualifications are introduced (response times, pole placement, root-locus and frequency response).
Model predictive control is discussed as a representative of the modern control approaches. The role of sampled information, the time horizons and performance optimisation are considered.
During the course theory will be explained by examples from practice, exercising problems, working on a design case and application on a real life installation (practical's).

Learning outcomes:

At the end of the course the student must be able to:
- solve differential equations by using Laplace transformations;
- translate differential equations into transfer functions;
- derive stability and response characteristics from transfer functions;
- design, analyse and to tune PID controllers by using step response and root-locus methods;
- design, analyse and to tune PID controllers by using frequency response method and Bode and Nyquist;
- design, analyse an tune MPC-controllers at a basic level;
- improve the performance of controllers;
- analyze a process and to design a controller configuration;
- use special types of controllers as feedforward, and cascade controllers;
- apply these concepts during practical exercises.

Activities:

Lectures will be combined with exercises; computer instructions and computer practicals; practicals on a small installation; self study.

Examination:

Practicals must be finished with a positive result. If so, the final result of the course will be a combination of an examination and the result of the design problem.

Literature:

For this course a set of lecture notes will be used. The lecture notes will be distributed at the start of course. Additional course material will be distributed during the course.

ProgrammePhaseSpecializationPeriod
Compulsory for: BATBiosystems EngineeringBSc3WD
Restricted Optional for: MBTBiotechnologyMScE: Environmental Biotechnology3WD