Control Systems - Root Locus
Control Systems - Root Locus
Control Systems - Root Locus
Root-Locus
As we change gain, we notice that the system poles and zeros actually move around in the S-plane. This fact can
make life particularly difficult, when we need to solve higher-order equations repeatedly, for each new gain value.
The solution to this problem is a technique known as Root-Locus graphs. Root-Locus allows you to graph the
locations of the poles and zeros for every value of gain, by following several simple rules. As we know that a fan
switch also can control the speed of the fan.
Let's say we have a closed-loop transfer function for a particular system:
Where N is the numerator polynomial and D is the denominator polynomial of the transfer functions, respectively.
Now, we know that to find the poles of the equation, we must set the denominator to 0, and solve the characteristic
equation. In otherwords, the locations of the poles of a specific equation must satisfy the following relationship:
Now we have 2 equations that govern the locations of the poles of a system for all gain values:
[The Magnitude Equation]
Digital Systems
The same basic method can be used for considering digital systems in the Z-domain:
Where N is the numerator polynomial in z, D is the denominator polynomial in z, and is the open-loop
transfer function of the system, in the Z domain.
The denominator D(z), by the definition of the characteristic equation is equal to:
We can now convert this to polar coordinates, and take the angle of the polynomial:
If you will compare the two, the Z-domain equations are nearly identical to the S-domain equations, and act exactly
the same. For the remainder of the chapter, we will only consider the S-domain equations, with the understanding
that digital systems operate in nearly the same manner.
Note:
We generally use capital letters for functions in the frequency domain, but a(s) and b(s) are unimportant enough to
be lower-case.
Now, we can assume that G(s)H(s) is a fraction of some sort, with a numerator and a denominator that are both
polynomials. We can express this equation using arbitrary functions a(s) and b(s), as such:
Control Systems/Root Locus 3
We will refer to these functions a(s) and b(s) later in the procedure.
We can start drawing the root-locus by first placing the roots of b(s) on the graph with an 'X'. Next, we place the
roots of a(s) on the graph, and mark them with an 'O'.
poles are marked on the graph with an 'X' and zeros are marked with an 'O' by common convention. These letters have no particular
meaning
Next, we examine the real-axis. starting from the right-hand side of the graph and traveling to the left, we draw a
root-locus line on the real-axis at every point to the left of an odd number of poles on the real-axis. This may sound
tricky at first, but it becomes easier with practice.
Now, a root-locus line starts at every pole. Therefore, any place that two poles appear to be connected by a root locus
line on the real-axis, the two poles actually move towards each other, and then they "break away", and move off the
axis. The point where the poles break off the axis is called the breakaway point. From here, the root locus lines
travel towards the nearest zero.
It is important to note that the s-plane is symmetrical about the real axis, so whatever is drawn on the top-half of the
S-plane, must be drawn in mirror-image on the bottom-half plane.
Once a pole breaks away from the real axis, they can either travel out towards infinity (to meet an implict zero), or
they can travel to meet an explict zero, or they can re-join the real-axis to meet a zero that is located on the real-axis.
If a pole is traveling towards infinity, it always follows an asymptote. The number of asymptotes is equal to the
number of implict zeros at infinity.
Rule 6
The root-locus diagram is symmetric about the real-axis. All complex roots are conjugates.
Rule 7
Two roots that meet on the real-axis will break away from the axis at certain break-away points. If we set s →
σ (no imaginary part), we can use the following equation:
Rule 8
The breakaway lines of the root locus are separated by angles of , where α is the number of poles
The origin of these asymptotes, OA, is given as the sum of the pole locations, minus the sum of the zero
locations, divided by the difference between the number of poles and zeros:
Note that the sum of the angles of all the poles and zeros must equal to 180.
Number of Asymptotes
If the number of explicit zeros of the system is denoted by Z (uppercase z), and the number of poles of the system is
given by P, then the number of asymptotes (Na) is given by:
[Number of Asymptotes]
for values of .
The angles for the asymptotes are measured from the positive real-axis
Where is the sum of all the locations of the poles, and is the sum of all the locations of the explicit zeros.
Breakaway Points
The breakaway points are located at the roots of the following equation:
[Breakaway Point Locations]
or
Once you solve for z, the real roots give you the breakaway/reentry points. Complex roots correspond to a lack of
breakaway/reentry.
The breakaway point equation can be difficult to solve, so many times the actual location is approximated.
Control Systems/Root Locus 6
Examples
If we look at the characteristic equation, we can quickly solve for the single pole of the system:
We plot that point on our root-locus graph, and everything on the real axis to the left of that single point is on the
root locus (from the rules, above). Therefore, the root locus of our system looks like this:
Control Systems/Root Locus 7
From this image, we can see that for all values of gain this system is stable.
We know that the breakaway occurs between the first and third poles, so we will estimate the exact breakaway point.
Drawing the root-locus gives us the graph below.
We can see that for low values of gain the system is stable, but for higher values of gain, the system becomes
unstable.
Control Systems/Root Locus 8
If we look at the denominator, we have poles at the origin, -1, and -2. Following Rule 4, we know that the real-axis
between the first two poles, and the real axis after the third pole are all on the root-locus. We also know that there is
going to be a breakaway point between the first two poles, so that they can approach the complex conjugate zeros. If
we use the quadratic equation on the numerator, we can find that the zeros are located at:
We can see from this graph that the system is stable for all values of K.
Now, we can generate the coefficient vectors from the numerator and denominator:
Control Systems/Root Locus 9
num = [0 0 1 2];
den = [1 5 8 6];
rlocus(num, den);
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