MAKERERE UNIVERSITY

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING, DESIGN, ART AND TECHNOLOGY

SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING

DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRICAL AND COMPUTER ENGINEERING.

FUNDAMENTALS OF CONTROL SYSTEMS, ELE2224 - ASSIGNMENT 1

BY MS. CHARLENE NAGAWA

GROUP 9 MEMBERS
NAME REGISTRATION NO.
TWINOMUJUNI CONAN MUTUNGI 23/U/1503
SHAWAL MBALIRE 21/U/0851
BANANUKA LYNNETE 23/U/0355
NASASIRA OWEN 23/U/1200
SSENNUNGI EDRINE 23/U/17645/PSA
CHANWAT HUMPHREY 23/U/0401
MUTALE VICENT 23/U/27390/PS
AGASHA MOREEN 22/U/5659
ANYANG BENJAMIN 23/X/25071/PS
WEPONDI ELISHA 23/U/24867/PSA
 1. Define Bode Plots. Explain their importance in control systems engineering.
A Bode plot is a graphical representation of a linear time-invariant (LTI) system's frequency
response. It consists of two separate plots: one for magnitude and one for phase, both plotted
against frequency on a logarithmic scale.

Importance of Bode Plots

 Stability Analysis: Bode plots help determine the stability of a control system.
By examining the gain and phase margins, engineers can assess how close the
system is to instability.
 Design and Tuning: Engineers use Bode plots to design controllers (like PID
controllers) and to tune their parameters for desired performance
characteristics.
 System Behavior: They provide insights into how a system responds to
different frequencies, which is crucial for understanding resonance, bandwidth,
and filtering characteristics

[1]

2. Differentiate between Gain Margin and Phase Margin. How do they contribute to
determining the stability of a system?

Gain margin is the amount of gain increase required to make the system marginally stable. It
is defined as the change in open loop gain required to make the system unstable and is
measured at the phase crossover frequency, where the phase of the open-loop transfer
function is -180 degrees, while:

Phase margin is the amount of phase lag required to make the system marginally stable. It is
defined as the change in open loop phase shift required to make a closed loop system
unstable and measured at the gain crossover frequency, where the magnitude of the open-
loop transfer function is 0 dB or unity gain.

The stability of the control system is based on the relation between gain margin and phase
margin. If both the gain margin and the phase margin are positive, then the control system is
stable. If both the gain margin and the phase margin are equal to zero, then the control system
is marginally stable. If the gain margin and / or the phase margin are/is negative, then the
control system is unstable.

3. Explain the significance of the characteristic equation in control systems. How is it used
in stability analysis?
In control systems, the characteristic equation is a crucial tool for analyzing stability, as it
directly relates the system's dynamic behavior to the location of its roots in the complex
plane; essentially, the stability of a control system is determined by the positions of the roots
 of its characteristic equation, where all roots must lie in the left half of the s-plane for a stable
system.
The characteristic equation is used in different methods to analyze the stability of a system;
a) Routh Hurwitz Stability criterion, we require the characteristic equation to find the
stability of the closed-loop control systems. It analyzes the signs of coefficients in a
characteristic equation's Routh array. If all signs remain unchanged in the first column, the
system is stable.

b) Root Locus Method: The root locus is defined as the locus of a closed loop poles obtained
when system gain K varied from zero to infinity. It plots root movement trajectories to
determine if poles of the characteristic equation always reside in the left half-plane during
gain variations. Crossing into right half indicates instability. In a root locus diagram, the path
of the closed-loop poles is found, allowing us to identify the nature of the control system.
This technique uses the open-loop transfer function to determine the stability of the closed-
loop control system.

c) The Nyquist Stability Criterion: It helps assess the stability of a closed-loop system by
analyzing the open-loop transfer function's frequency response. It uses the characteristic
equation 1 + G(s)H(s) = 0, where G(s)H(s) is the open-loop transfer function, to determine
the system’s poles. By plotting the Nyquist plot of G(s)H(s) in the complex plane, the
criterion examines how many times the plot encircles the critical point −1. The number of
encirclements corresponds to the number of unstable poles in the right half of the s-plane,
which are determined by the characteristic equation. If the Nyquist plot encircles −1 the same
number of times as there are right half-plane poles, the closed-loop system is stable;
otherwise, it is unstable.

C
4. Using the given block diagram, derive the overall transfer function for a feedback
R
control system. Show all steps clearly.

Answer:
Given that R = Input signal, E = Control signal, G = Control system, C = Output signal, F
= Feedback signal and H = Feedback system, then from the block diagram;
Output signal ,C (s)
Transfer function =
Input signal , R(s)

E(s) = R(s) – F(s) ………….. (i)

C(s) = G(s) * E(s) …………. (ii)
 F(s) = C(s) * H(s) …………. (iii)

Substituting for equation (i) into equation (ii) gives;

C(s) = [R(s) – F(s)] * G(s)
C(s) = R(s)G(s) – F(s)G(s) …………….. (iv)

Substituting for equation (iii) into equation (iv) gives;

C(s) = R(s)G(s) – C(s)G(s)H(s)
C(s) + C(s)G(s)H(s) = R(s)G(s)
C(s) [1 + G(s)H(s)] = R(s)G(s)

Rearranging gives the final transfer function as

C( s) G(s)
R( s)
= 1+ G(s )H (s)

5. Explain the process of plotting Bode Plots. What information can be obtained from the
magnitude and phase plots?

Below is the process of plotting Bode Plots;

a. Transform the transfer function: Rewrite the system's transfer function in standard
form, ensuring that both the numerator and denominator are factored to clearly
identify the poles and zeros.

b. Separate components: Decompose the transfer function into its individual

elements, including constant terms, poles at the origin (s=0), zeros at the origin
(s=0), real poles, real zeros, and complex conjugate poles/zeros.
c. Analyze each component:
Magnitude plot: For each pole or zero, assess the slope of the line based on its frequency
and multiplicity. A pole results in a slope of -20 dB/decade, while zero results in a slope
of +20 dB/decade. The slope will adjust at the frequency of each pole or zero.
Phase plot: At low frequencies, a pole introduces a phase shift of -90 degrees, whereas a
zero introduces a phase shift of +90 degrees. This phase shift occurs gradually over a
decade of frequency surrounding the pole or zero.

d. Combine individual plots: Overlay the individual magnitude and phase plots for
each component to construct the complete Bode plot.

Below is the information can be obtained from the magnitude and phase plots;

a. Gain Margin: Amount of additional gain a system can handle before becoming
unstable, in decibels at the frequency where phase shift is -180°.
 b. Phase Margin: Amount of additional phase shift a system can endure before
reaching instability, in degrees at the frequency where the gain intersects 0 dB.

c. Gain Crossover Frequency: Frequency at which the magnitude plot crosses the
0 dB line.

d. Phase Crossover Frequency: The frequency at which the phase plot crosses the
-180° line.

e. Bandwidth: The frequency range over which the system gain is fairly constant,
typically estimated from the crossover frequencies.

f. System Stability: By looking at the gain and phase margins, engineers can verify
if a system is stable, marginally stable, or unstable.

g. System Poles and Zeros: The shape of the Bode plot can provide information
about the location of the zeros and poles of the system that influence the
frequency response behavior of the system.

6. Perform a stability analysis using Bode Plots for the following transfer function:
10
G(s)H(s)=
s (s+2)(s +5)
• Plot the Bode Plots for the given transfer function.
• Determine the Gain Margin and Phase Margin.
• Assess the stability of the system based on the Bode Plots.

Answer:
10
Given that; G(s)H(s) = s (s+2)(s +5) then substituting for s = jω
10
= jω( jω+ 2)( jω+ 5)
10
= jω jω
jω(2)(5)( +1)( + 1)
2 5
1
= jω jω
jω( + 1)( +1)
2 5
 jω jω
Gain in dB = 20 log 10 1 - 20 log 10 jω - 20 log 10 [ +1] - 20 log 10 [ +1]
2 5

−1 ω −1 ω
Phase angles φ(s) = -90° - tan - tan
2 5

w θ
0.1 -94
0.2 -98
0.5 -109.75
1 -127.87
2 -156.8
5 -203.2
10 -232.13
20 -250.25
50 -262
100 -266
1000 -269.6
 The magnitude is 0 when the frequency, ωgc = 1 rad/s
The phase value corresponding to ωgc = 1 rad/s, is φ = -135°
The phase margin = 180° + phase at ωgc
= 180° + - 135°
= 45°

The phase is -180° when the frequency, ωpc = 3.5 rad/s

The magnitude value corresponding to ωpc = 3.5 rad/s, is -16.67 dB
The gain margin = - (Magnitude in dB at ωpc)
= -(-16.67)
= 16.67 dB
Therefore the system is stable because the phase margin, 45° is positive or greater than 0
and the gain margin, 16.67 dB is also positive and greater than 0dB.

7. Consider a system with the transfer function:

K
G(s)H(s)=
s (s+1)(s +2)

Plot the Bode Plots for the given transfer function.

In the time constant form

K
2 K
G(s)H(s) = , let K1 =
( S2 )
S (1+ S ) 1+
2

In the frequency domain S = jw

K1
G(jw)H(jw) =
(
jw ( 1+ jw ) 1+
jw
2 )
Analysis for gain plots
K
Determining the valve of K from using Roots locus using characteristic equation
S ( S+ 1 )( S+2 )
Transfer function = 1+ KGH =0
 K
1+ =0
S ( S+ 1 )( S+2 )
S ( S +1 ) ( S +2 ) + K=0
S3 + 3S2 + 2S + K =0
1 2
3 K
6−K
0
3
K 0
Determining K from
6−K
=0, thus K = 6 and K1 = 3
3

Factors Individual effect Overall effect

Constant, K1 20log 3 20log 3
1 -20 dB/decade from the -20 dB/decade from the
Pole at origin ,
jw origin origin up to wc = 1
1 -20 dB/decade from wc = 1 -40 dB/decade from wc = 1 up
First order pole, , wc =
1+ jw to wc = 2
1
1 -20 dB/decade from wc = 2 -60 dB/decade from wc = 2
,
First order pole, jw wc = onwards
1+
2
2

Analysis for the phase plot

K1
G(jw)H(jw) =
(
jw ( 1+ jw ) 1+
jw
2 )
0
Phase angle G(jw) = w
tan−1 ∞+ tan−1 w+ tan−1
2
−1 −1 w
θ=−90−tan w−tan
2
w θ
 0.1 - 98.57
0.2 - 107.02
0.5 - 130. 60
1 -161.56
2 -198.43
5 -236.89
10 -252.98
20 -261.43
50 -266.56
100 -268.28
1000 -269.83

Bode plot drawing

 Determine the Gain Margin and Phase Margin
The magnitude is 0 when the frequency, ωgc = 1.7 rad/s
The phase value corresponding to ωgc = 1.7 rad/s, is φ = -187.5°
The phase margin = 180° + phase at ωgc
= 180° + - 187.5°
= -7.5°

The phase is -180° when the frequency, ωpc = 1.5 rad/s

The magnitude value corresponding to ωpc = 1.5 rad/s, is 3.33 dB
The gain margin = - (Magnitude in dB at ωpc)
= - (3.33)
= - 3.33dB

Analyze the stability of the system

 Therefore, the system is unstable because the phase margin, -7.5° is negative hence less
than 0 and the gain margin, -3.33dB is also negative and less than 0dB.

8. Discuss the limitations of using Bode Plots for stability analysis. Why might other
stability criteria be necessary in control system analysis? Provide examples of other
criteria and explain their advantages.

1. Nonlinear Systems

 Limitation: Bode plots rely on linear system theory, making them unsuitable for systems
with nonlinearities such as saturation, hysteresis, or backlash.
 Impact: For nonlinear systems, frequency response alone cannot predict stability, as
nonlinearities can cause behaviors like limit cycles, which Bode plots cannot capture.

2. Single-Point Metrics (Gain Margin and Phase Margin)

 Limitation: Gain Margin (GM) and Phase Margin (PM) are assessed at specific
frequencies: phase crossover and gain crossover. This ignores global system behavior.
 Impact: Systems with multiple resonant peaks or hidden dynamics may appear stable in
Bode plots but could oscillate or become unstable due to unmodeled modes.
 3. Non-Minimum Phase Systems

 Limitation: Systems with right-half-plane (RHP) zeros, such as inverted pendulums or

aircraft dynamics, exhibit phase responses that contradict their magnitude plots.
 Impact: Bode plots may incorrectly predict stability margins for such systems, failing to
account for phase behaviors that lead to instability.

4. Time Delays

 Limitation: Time delays introduce a phase lag proportional to frequency.

 Impact: Bode plots can approximate delays, but struggle with large or dynamically
varying delays, which can significantly affect stability.

5. Open-Loop Stability Assumption

 Limitation: Bode plots assume that the open-loop system is stable.

 Impact: For open-loop unstable systems (e.g., rockets or magnetic levitation systems),
Bode analysis alone cannot guarantee closed-loop stability.

 6. MIMO Systems

 Limitation: Bode plots are limited to Single-Input, Single-Output (SISO) systems.

 Impact: For Multi-Input, Multi-Output (MIMO) systems, Bode plots cannot capture the
coupling between channels or multivariable dynamics, making them inadequate for
analyzing complex systems.

 7. Relative Stability Only

 Limitation: Bode plots assess only relative stability (i.e., how close the system is to
instability).
 Impact: They do not provide guarantees of absolute stability, particularly in nonlinear or
time-varying systems.

Why Other Stability Criteria Are Necessary

Given the limitations of Bode plots, other stability criteria are necessary for more comprehensive
and robust system analysis. These alternative criteria can address:

 Nonlinearities, time delays, or time-varying parameters.

 Complex dynamics (e.g., systems with RHP poles/zeros, multiple resonances).
 MIMO system interactions.
Alternative stability criteria provide:

 Global stability guarantees (beyond single-point margins).

 Time-domain insights (such as transient response and overshoot).
 Handling of nonlinearities and MIMO systems.

Examples of Other Stability Criteria

1. Nyquist Stability Criterion

 Basis: Uses the open loop transfer function’s Nyquist plot to count encirclements of the (-
1, 0) point.
Advantages:
o Works for open-loop unstable systems.
o Handles time delays and non-minimum phase systems more rigorously.
o Provides a global stability view, unlike GM and PM.
Example: Stabilizing a magnetic levitation system (inherently open-loop unstable).

2. Root Locus Method

 Basis: Traces closed-loop pole locations as a function of system gain.

Advantages:
o Directly shows pole migration into unstable regions (RHP).
o Useful for tuning controller gains while avoiding instability.
Example: Designing a PID controller for a motor drive with variable loads.

3. Lyapunov Stability Theory

 Basis: Uses energy-like Lyapunov functions to prove stability for nonlinear or time-
varying systems.
Advantages:
o Guarantees global asymptotic stability (not limited to small perturbations).
o Applicable to state-space models (MIMO systems).
Example: Stabilizing a quadrotor drone with nonlinear dynamics.

4. Passivity-Based Stability

 Basis: Ensures a system dissipates energy (passive) when interacting with other
components.
Advantages:
 
o Robust to interconnected systems (e.g., power grids, robotic networks).
o Useful for nonlinear systems with energy-based dynamics.
Example: Ensuring stability in a grid-connected inverter system.

5. Describing Function Method

 Basis: Approximates nonlinearities (e.g., saturation, dead zones) as quasi-linear gains in

the frequency domain.
 Advantages:
 Basis: Approximates nonlinearities (e.g., saturation, dead zones) as quasi-linear gains in
the frequency domain.
Advantages:
o Predicts limit cycles (persistent oscillations) in nonlinear systems.
o Extends Bode-like analysis to mild nonlinearities.
Example: Analyzing a thermostat-controlled heating system with hysteresis.

6. State-Space Methods (e.g., Eigenvalue Analysis)

 Basis: Examines eigenvalues of the system matrix in the state-space representation

x˙=Ax+Bu.
Advantages:
 Directly evaluates stability for MIMO systems.
 Captures modal behavior (dominant poles, damping ratios).
 Example: Stability analysis of an aircraft’s flight control system.

[2]

References

[1] [Online]. Available: https://www.quora.com/What-is-bode-plot-in-control-systems?

top_ans=132824017.
[2] [Online]. Available: https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/control-systems-stability/.