How Do I Tune a Level Controller?

By Control Guru | November 25, 2014

Level controllers present challenges that are different from others. Although their presence is significant they lag behind Flow controllers in their overall share of the typical production facility’s process control landscape. Unlike other processes such as Temperature, Pressure and Flow, Level control loops demonstrate different dynamics, they don’t play by the same rules as the non-integrating (also known as self-regulating) types. And although best-practices for modeling and tuning Level loops are similar they involve nuances that can hamper a less experienced practitioner.

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Why is Zeigler-Nichols the Wrong Choice for Your PID Controllers?

By Control Guru | October 28, 2014

In 1909 Henry Ford famously offered customers any color of his Model T automobile as long as their choice was black. Ford’s “one size fits all” philosophy worked remarkably well at the turn of the 20th Century. For sure, the general population’s improved financial means, its appetite for mobility, and of course a dearth of alternative low-cost options played a role. In contrast, a “one size fits all” approach to PID controller tuning doesn’t work so well in today’s complex, multi-process production environments

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What is Lambda Tuning?

By Control Guru | June 27, 2014

Tuning a PID controller should always start with a clear understanding of both the control objective and the Design Level of Operation (DLO).  Unfortunately a subsequent step (the calculation of tuning parameters) can often put practitioners in a bind relative to achieving the designated objective.

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