THE COPPERBELT UNIVERSITY

In Conjunction with
LUANSHYA TECHNICAL AND BUSINESS COLLEGE MANAGEMENT BOARD
2020 E - LEARNING
DEF 350 – AUTOMATIC CONTROL SYSTEMS
Diploma in Electrical Engineering

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BLOCK DIAGRAM ANALYSIS

In the previous Topic the concept of a transfer function for a linear time-invariant system was
presented. By definition the transfer function is the ratio of the Laplace transform of the output
variable to the Laplace transform of the input variable. Let X(s) be the (Laplace transform) of the
input variable, Y(s) be the output variable, and G(s) be the transfer function of the plant. One
method of graphically denoting the relationship Y(s) = X(s)G(s) is through a block diagram, as
shown in the following figure.

X(s) Y(s)
G(s)

INPUT OUTPUT

Figure 1: Simple transfer function block diagram representation

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The block represents a transfer function corresponding to a system’s mathematical model and the
arrows represent signals (e.g. electrical voltage from a position sensor). Many systems are
composed of multiple subsystems. When multiple subsystems are interconnected, a few more
schematic elements must be added to the block diagram. These new elements are summing
junctions and pick-off or Take-off points. All component parts of a block diagram for a linear
time-invariant system are shown in the following figure. The characteristic of the summing
junction is that the output signal is the algebraic sum of the input signals. The figure shows three
inputs, but any number can be present. A pick-off point distributes the input signals to several
output points.

Figure 2: Representation of summing junction and pickoff point.

Common forms of Block diagram representation

There are three basic common forms, by which the subsystems are connected together. They are
cascade form, parallel form, and feedback form. The following figure shows an example of
cascaded subsystems. Intermediate signal values are shown at the output of each subsystem.
Each signal is obtained from the product of the input and the transfer function. The equivalent
transfer function is the product of the subsystems’ transfer functions.

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Figure 3: Cascade system transfer function simplification
An example of parallel subsystems is shown in the following figure. The output is the algebraic
sum of the outputs from all of the subsystems; and the equivalent transfer function is the
algebraic sum of the subsystems’ transfer functions.

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Figure 4: Parallel system transfer function simplification

The third configuration of block diagram is the feedback form. One of the examples is shown in
the following figure.

X + E Y
G
+/-

Figure 5: Domain less Feedback system

Simplification of block diagrams

In the analysis of control systems it is very convenient to obtain the block diagrams of different
components and their interconnections. If the various components are non-interacting, it is
possible to obtain the overall transfer function of the system through a suitable combination of
the transfer functions of the component blocks utilizing some basic rules of block diagram
transformations to reduce the original diagram. These are re-emphasized below.

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1. Combining blocks in cascade

X1 X2 Y
G1 G2

X1 G1G2 Y

Figure 6: Combining blocks in cascade

These rules can easily be proved. For example, consider the cascade blocks shown in (a). Here
we have the equations

X2 = G1X1
and
Y = G2X2

Eliminating X2 from these two equations, we get

Y = (G1 G2 )X1

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2. Elimination of the feedback loop

X + E Y
G
-

X Y
G/(1 + GH)

Figure 7: Elimination of the feedback loop

For the feedback loop shown above;

Y = GE
and
E = X – HY
Eliminating E from the two equations results in the simplification shown below;

Y= GX / (1 + GH)

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Summary of different techniques used in block diagram reduction

7. Combining Blocks in Parallel

8. Moving summing point : 

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ASSIGNMENT 3: 1.Derive the transfer function of the system shown below.

2. Find the transfer function of the following system.

{Answer}

3. Simplify the block diagram shown in Figure below.

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4. Obtain the transfer function C/R of the block diagram shown in Figure below.

[Ans]

5. Derive the transfer function of the system shown below.

[Answer]

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