2.8 Applications: feedback control and real-time measurement

Control systems Control systems!history of One of the primary applications of real-time computing for mechanical engineers is that of feedback control. It is a powerful idea: a desired system state is compared to a measurement of its actual state and actuation is applied such that the difference between the desired and the actual state (the error) is minimized. This concept has been realized in many ways since around 300 BC, when the Greek inventor Ctesibius used a float valve to regulate the flow of water to a relatively constant rate, which improved the measurement of time for water clocks Nise (2019).

The twentieth century, especially its latter half, saw a mathematization and a vast improvement in the analysis and implementation of control theory. Electronic circuits began to perform the key "logic" function: for example, "If \(a\) is …