ATI
Q45D-ODO Optical D.O. System
Part 7 –PID Controller
O & M Manual
Revision C (7/09)
56 -
7.4
Manual PID Override Control
The Q45 electronics is equipped designed to allow the user to take manual
control of the PID output. This is often useful when starting up a control loop, or
in the event that you wish to bump the system manually to measure system
response time.
To access the manual PID control, you must be in the MEASURE mode of
operation and you must have the PID output displayed on the lower line. This
line will indicate “XX.X% XX.X mA” with the X values simply indicating the
current values. With this display on the screen, press and hold the ENTER key
for about 5 seconds. You will see a small “m” show up between the % value and
the mA value. This indicates you are now in manual mode.
Once in manual, you may increase the PID output by pressing the UP arrow or
you may decrease the output by pressing the LEFT arrow. This will allow you to
drive the PID output to any desired setting.
To revert to normal PID control, press and hold the ENTER key again until the
“m” indicator disappears.
7.5
Common PID Pitfalls
The most common problem occurring in PID control applications involves the
false belief that proper settings on only the PID controller can balance any
process to an efficient level.
Close-loop control can only be effective if all elements in the loop are properly
selected for the application, and the process behavior is properly understood.
Luckily, the nature of simple chemical control process’ are generally slow in
nature. Therefore, even a de-tuned controller (one that responds somewhat
slowly) can still provide substantial improvements to setpoint control. In fact,
damaging oscillatory behavior is far more likely in tightly tuned controllers where
the user attempted to increase response too much.
When deciding on a PID control scheme, it is important to initially review all
elements of the process. Sticking valves, undersized pumps, or delays in
reaction times associated with chemical addition can have a dramatic effect on
the stability of the control loop. When controlling a chemical mix or reaction, the
sensor should be placed in a location that ensures proper mixing or reaction time
has occurred.
