Research And Application Of Semi-Physical Simulation Test System For Process Control

Process control is an important course of automatic subject of university. After learning the theories in the classroom, the students have an eager for digesting and understanding and to innovate. So, it is very important to establish a process control experimental system, which should be easily operated and make the control policy implement convenient.On the base of the original laboratory devices, a semi-physical simulation test system for process control is studied and constructed by use of the semi-physical theory. The semi-physical simulation test system provides a sound environment to develop and test controller aimed to process control. It integrates the controller model with the physical environment to form a simulation system with hardware in the loop, and so a rapid method to develop controller prototype is presented.In this system, PC accomplishes three tasks, which are data acquisition ^ controlling output and implement of control policy ,and provides a environment to develop and test the virtual controller. The virtual controller is designed in the Simulink, which have a graphical interface to user. Simulink not only have a capacity of numerical simulation, but also, when in the external mode , it can perform real-time simulation. In order to get the performance of the controller, Real-Time Workshop translates the Simulink model into a real-time executable in different target first, and then supported by the Real-Time Windows Target, the executable can run in the real time under the windows operation system. In the Simulink model I/O boards can represent a real borads, so PC can acquire data and exert control. In that way, a semi-physical simulation system composed of virtual controller and physical device is built for test of the virtual controllerBased on this system, the three laboratory subjects which are establishment of the mathematic model, development of the laboratory education plane and the study of fuzzy control technology have been done, and the work adequately prove the excellences of this system., which are1. Graphical environment to develop virtual controller2. System to create real-time executable3. Accomplishment of the real-time control under the windows operation system by useof RTWT4. Capacity of online parameter modification and graphical display and storage of data5. Support for a number of I/O boardsIn a word, this semi-physical simulation system has been formed to satisfy laboratory education and provide a plane for study of advanced control policy. In doing so, the process control experimental laboratory is enriched.