A dead-time compensating PID controller structure and robust tuning

In the present paper a dead-time compensating proportional-integral-derivative (DTC–PID) controller with anti-windup action is derived. The proposed controller also can be configured as a PID controller or as a dead-time compensating PI (DTC–PI) controller. For stable, integrating and unstable processes, approximated with the first-order plus dead-time (FOPDT) model, robust tuning procedure is derived for the DTC–PI controller. Optimization of the regulatory performance of the DTC–PID controller is based on the frequency response of higher-order models, under constraints on the robustness and sensitivity to measurement noise. Excellent performance/robustness trade-off is obtained for stable, integrating and unstable processes, including dead-time, as confirmed by simulations and by experimental results obtained on a laboratory thermal process.