The advancement of
technology has significantly developed control engineering and controls now play
a leading role in a lot of stuff from motoring to even our home washing machine.
Control engineering studies the modeling of a
diverse range of dynamic systems. Commercial and industrial heating, ventilation and air conditioning
(HVAC) are individual systems acting independently and can be interconnected to
improve performance.
We implement
controllers that cause HVAC to behave in the desired manner. The most common controller implemented is
a proportion-integral-derivative (PID) controller with feedback. An everyday
example of PID is in a car with cruise control where the speed is continuously monitored
with sensors and is fed back to the part that adjusts the motor's torque
accordingly.
Stability is
important and control can help ensure this is achieved. In HVAC we encounter
regular disturbances from occupants changing a thermostat setting, doors opening and
closing in a pressurized space, a researcher raising a fume cupboard sash, or
even a
gust of wind!
Every system needs to
measure with the right degree of precision and accuracy to avoid a
risk of triggering feedback loops which are not needed. In HVAC we can often
relax temperature control but in some other applications high repeatability, precision and accuracy is
needed particularly in our critical ventilation applications.
Prior to modern electronics control
applications were implemented using very basic pneumatic control devices and many of these
are still in operation today.
The implementation of control systems has
become easier as electronics and manufacturing costs have fallen. At Viscon we focus
on what we do best - designing a control system with interconnecting parts
functioning as a whole. It is the
brains of engineers that will bring the next major advancement in control
engineering.
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