Electrical Engineering Stack Exchange
Electrical Engineering Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [control]

Control refers to systems that control other systems, whether that be industrial machinery, lighting, or devices used in a home.

1198 questions
44
votes
3 answers

Switching DC with MOSFET: p-Channel or n-Channel; Low Side Load or High Side Load?

I think, it is time I understand working principle of MOSFET transistors... Suppose that; I want to switch voltage on a resistive load by a MOSFET transistor. Any control signal between -500V and +500V can be easily generated. The transistor…
hkBattousai
  • 13,913
  • 31
  • 114
  • 190
41
votes
5 answers

Poles and Zeros in English

Can someone explain, or provide a good reference to an explanation of Poles and Zeros for say, a power supply compensator, or any control system for that matter. I'm not really looking for a mathematical explanation, as that seems rather straight…
bt2
  • 3,784
  • 2
  • 25
  • 28
32
votes
7 answers

What is the advantage of a Z transform derived PID implemenation?

I've seen many PID articles, such as this, use a Z transform of the generic PID equation to derive some crazy difference equation which can then be implemented in software (or in this case an FPGA). My question is, what is the advantage to such an…
bt2
  • 3,784
  • 2
  • 25
  • 28
29
votes
1 answer

How is it possible that HDDs are mechanically so robust?

Hard disk drives (HDDs) rely on a small read-write-head which hover about 70 nm over the platter 1, 2. The physical effect on which this hovering is based seems to be the ground effect 3, so it seems as if there is no electronic closed-loop control…
cakelover
  • 453
  • 4
  • 7
24
votes
6 answers

In earlier tape recorders, how was tape spool angular velocity adjusted?

Tape recorders that use spools of magnetic tape transfer the tape from one spool to another as the tape plays/records. The spool with less tape must be rotated faster than the other. Here is such a tape recorder/player. This is the Craig Model…
quantum231
  • 11,218
  • 24
  • 99
  • 192
20
votes
6 answers

How do I come up with a list of requirements for a microcontroller for my project? How can I then find microcontrollers that fit?

I have been working on an eBike control project on the Arduino MEGA2560. The program runs 3x PID control loops, one battery capacity control loop (interpolation based on lookup tables), a speedometer (samples based on a reed switch) as well as an…
Eliott W
  • 629
  • 7
  • 19
17
votes
4 answers

Control differences between ac induction motor and brushless dc motor?

I have a fairly solid background in industrial AC motor control (soft starters, VFDs, etc.) but something that I'm certainly NOT well versed in is brushless DC motors... the type found in every hard drive on the planet. As far as I can tell, they…
akohlsmith
  • 11,162
  • 1
  • 35
  • 62
17
votes
6 answers

PID algorithm: how to account for fast input value changes after a long delay

I am trying to implement a basic PID algorithm on an Arduino Leonardo to mix hot and cold tap water using servo-controlled valves. The goal is to hold the temperature as close to a setpoint as possible. Especially important is preventing the…
Ryan Griggs
  • 2,596
  • 2
  • 30
  • 53
15
votes
6 answers

Stability problem in unity-gain opAmp

As a part of a controlled power supply for hardware-in-loop testing for a student driven project, I had to develop a current buffer (voltage follower) which could source up to 1 A. I had the (bad) idea of trying to implement this simple…
svilches
  • 519
  • 2
  • 4
  • 11
13
votes
2 answers

Feeding a Full-Bridge from a Boost Converter?

I have been researching about designing a 3kW DC-DC Converter (Vin 12V from a battery, Vout 350VDC) and actually wired up a simple isolated Full-Bridge based DC-DC converter a few days back converting 12VDC to 140VDC. However, I noticed that it was…
Saad
  • 5,319
  • 12
  • 60
  • 93
12
votes
2 answers

What is causing this long tail in the transient reponse?

I have a fifth order transfer function for which I designed a controller using pole-zero cancellation technique on a root locus. I am targeting \$<5%\$ overshoot and \$<2s\$ settling time. Currently, the overshoot criteria are satisfied. Note I know…
rrz0
  • 1,171
  • 1
  • 21
  • 42
12
votes
1 answer

Why isn't the Fourier transform of a single sine wave cycle a single bar?

I have tried different Fourier transform codes out there on single sine waves, and all of them produce a distributed spectrum with a resonance at the signal frequency when they should theoretically display a single bar. The sampling frequency has…
Mister Mystère
  • 9,477
  • 6
  • 51
  • 82
12
votes
8 answers

What is the name of the protocol(s) used to let an automatic garage door opener know which button I've pushed on the wall control panel?

The wired wall control panel in my garage has only 2 wires connected to it. Yet somehow it acts different when I push the big "door" button than when I push the "light" button or the "lock" button. That pair of wires is connected to the overhead…
davidcary
  • 17,426
  • 11
  • 66
  • 115
12
votes
3 answers

Controlling High Voltage device with Arduino

I want to control lava lamps using Arduino. I think it shouldn't be hard project, but I have no experience with hardware projects so I'm not sure witch design will feet best for me. I consider using S202T01 Series Solid State Relays (I already have…
Maciek Sawicki
  • 810
  • 1
  • 9
  • 13
11
votes
5 answers

What are the effects of removing P, I, and D from a PID controller respectively?

A proportional, integral, and derivative (PID) controller can feature three terms.) We sometimes see only two of the terms in use. For example, the derivative is disregarded for a PI controller. While I know what each of the three terms do, I am not…
HFOrangefish
  • 839
  • 3
  • 14
1
2 3
…
79 80