Feedback Control Lab
Tune a simplified thermal system and compare proportional and integral control with delay, heat loss and limited heater power.
Notice · 1 of 3
Try the experiment, then check the ideas behind it. Stars track these answers; they do not measure your experiment.
Progress stays in this browser only. First-try answers earn 100 points, second tries 75, and later tries 50. One star per completed checkpoint. The timer is optional and never affects points.
Theory and model assumptions
C dT/dt = Pmax·u − G(T − Tout); e = Ttarget − Tsensed; u = clamp(Kp·e + Ki·I, 0, 1). Conditional integration limits windup. Explicit Euler uses a fixed 0.1 s step, independent of rendering. One well-mixed thermal mass; no spatial gradients. A disturbance lowers outside temperature by 10 °C at 150 s.
Teacher guidance
P control needs a persistent error to supply heat. Integral action can reduce that error, but saturation and sensing delay matter. The heater limit is Tout + Pmax/G. Energy and time in the ±2 °C band are measured over the displayed 300 s run; this is a simplified teaching plant.
Expected time: 20–30 minutes.