The Root Locus design method

- Exercises -

1. We wish to design a velocity control for a tape-drive servomechanism. The transfer function from
current () to tape velocity Ω() (in millimeters per millisecond per ampere) is:

We wish to design a feedback system so that the response to a reference step satisfies:

=0, ≤ 4m, ≤ 15ms, ≤ 5 %

2. Consider the plant transfer function

to be put in a unity feedback loop. This is the transfer function relating the input force () and the
position () of mass in the non-collocated sensor and actuator problem:

In this problem we will use root-locus techniques to design a controller () so that the closed-loop
step response has a rise time of less than 0.1 sec and an overshoot of less than 10%.
(a) Approximate () by assuming that ∼= 0, and let = 1, = 1, = 0.1, and () = .
Can be chosen to satisfy the performance specifications? Why or why not?

(b) Repeat part (a) assuming () = (+ ), and show that and can be chosen to meet the
specifications.

(c) Repeat part (b) but with a practical controller given by the transfer function
() = (+ ) /(+)and pick so that the values for and computed in part (b) remain
more or less valid.
3. A numerically controlled machine tool positioning servomechanism has a normalized and scaled
transfer function given by

Performance specifications require that, in the unity feedback configuration, the closed-loop poles
are located at = −1± √3.

(a) Show that this specification cannot be achieved by choosing proportional control alone,
()=.

(b) Design a compensator () = (+ )/(+ )that will meet the specification.