Control system engineering

What is control system engineering?

Control engineering or control system engineering is an engineering discipline that deals with automation processes such as knowledge of control systems, control theories that help build machinery that shows desired behavior under a controlled environment, etc. 

This engineering depicts a heavy use of sensors and detectors to measure the output performance that helps them operate without any human interference. 

The inputs are known as automatic control systems, for example, cruise control which regulates the speed of a car. Control system engineering is a multi-disciplinary subject that compiles knowledge of electrical, mechanical, and computer software systems. 

What are the examples of control engineering?

Some very common examples of control engineering would include 

  • Temperature control in a building, 
  • Voltage stabilizer
  • Cruise control in motor vehicles, 
  • Missile launcher
  • Speed control in a conveyer belt of a factory
  • Inverter Acs

What are the techniques of control engineering?

There are two major techniques of control engineering that are

  1. Open loop control systems or non-feedback control systems 
  2. Closed-loop control systems or feedback control systems

 Open loop control system:

It is a control system in which the control action is absolutely independent of the output of the system. Examples of such control systems would be automatic washing machines, electric lifts, traffic signals, etc. 

This control system is simple in construction, economical, and easy to maintain. And it also has no significant stability issues and works great when output is difficult to measure. But on the downside, it can often be inaccurate and unreliable as accuracy is dependent on the accuracy of the calibration. 

Close loop control system:

It is a system in which the control action is somewhat dependent on the output. For example, missile launches, servo voltage stabilizers, human perspiration systems, etc. 

Unlike open loop systems, this system is high in accuracy as any error that arises is corrected. Any changes in the output due to environmental effects or changes in parameters get easily corrected. So it is a great facilitator of automation. 

But the complicated design and costly maintenance might be its downside.