Control Systems: An introduction

This book’s objective is to equip the students of engineering schools with the necessary theoretical tools and programming skills to analyse dynamical systems and design appropriate controllers.The book starts with an introductory chapter on modelling of physical systems, gives a brief presentation of linearisation, and moves on to the frequency domain with the introduction of the Laplace transform and its inverse. This brings us to the concept of a transfer function, which is a notion of central importance in classical control theory. We give the definition of BIBO stability and state the Routh-Hurwitz criterion. We then move to the frequency domain: we discuss the properties of the steady state frequency response of the system and state the Bode stability criterion and conclude with the powerful Nyquist criterion.The theory is presented in a rigorous, yet accessible way, while numerous examples with illustrations help the reader to solidify their understanding and avoid common pitfalls and caveats.Key FeaturesEach piece of theory is followed by plenty of worked-out examplesHundreds of exercises (over 320), accompanied by hints and answersOver 250 high-quality figuresCode snippets and examples in Python and MATLABNew in version 1.0.6: Several corrections and clarifications. New exercises. Coming soon: Solutions manual (expected: March 2027). Read more