IPE 431
Automation and Control
3
Course Description
At the end of this course, the students should be able to:
1. explain the fundamental definition and concepts of automation and Control engineering;
2. explain control system in production engineering systems such as CNC machine tools,
Production-Inventory systems;
3. identify signal flow graphs and interpret them;
4. explain and classify transfer functions into various types and interpret them;
5. state the uses of block diagrams and the mathematical basis for the design of control
systems; and
6. discuss the importance and application of good instrumentation for the efficient design
of process control loops for production systems.
Course Outline
Basic definitions and concepts. Control systems in Production Engineering, e.g. CNC machine
tools, Production–Inventory Control, etc. Block diagrams and their reduction. Signal flow
graphs. Transfer functions. State–space representations. Some common transfer functions.
System Stability: Routh, Hurwitz, etc. stability criteria. System Classification. Error constants
and sensitivity. Types of system inputs. Second – Order Systems. Transient and Steady–State
Responses. Performance Indices. Root–Locus Analysis. Root–Locus Design. Bode Analysis.
Bode Design. Nyquist Analysis. Nyquist Design. Nicholas Chart Analysis. Nicholas Chart
Design.