HP Prime Controls Systems App v3.01 Herwig Taveirne rev.

November 25, 2021

1 Introduction

This document describes a custom HP Prime app, named ‘Control systems’.

It is used to study the frequency and time domain responses of control systems consisting of a process and a
controller. The app also calculates Root Locus Plots for unity feedback systems.

• In the frequency domain, open loop response with and without controller and resulting closed loop
response (unity feedback loop) can be determined / compared.
• In the time domain, the app calculates the open loop and unity feedback loop response to reference
changes as well as to disturbances (appearing between controller and process). It also calculates and
visualizes the controller output. Input types: Dirac pulse, unit step and ramp.

Although the app type is ‘Parametric’, the app does not rely on the built in HP Prime parametric plot
mechanism but on custom plotting routines, including custom mouse movement handling, key press detection
and custom soft key menus to accomplish functionality that would not be possible otherwise. App parametric
equations are only used in Numeric View. The app is entirely menu based (no need to type in commands).

The Control Systems app is the intellectual property of Herwig Taveirne, Belgium. This program is free software:
you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the
Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.

This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the
implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.
See the GNU General Public License for more details.: http://www.gnu.org/licenses

Developer email: [email protected]

2 Overview

The ‘Control systems’ app takes as input the transfer function of a process as well as the settings of a controller
and produces several plots typically used to study relative and absolute stability etc. Results are available in
numerical form as well.

Disturbance

r
+ ε Controller + + Process y C(S) and P(S): transfer
+- C(S) m P(S) functions of controller and
Input Output
process, respectively

Unity feedback

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Plot types:

• Frequency domain: Nyquist, Nichols, Bode (magnitude + phase, magnitude only, phase only)
• Time domain: input, output, error signal, controller output
• Root Locus Plot

Sample plots

Bode plot

Nyquist and

Nichols plots

Time domain response plot

Root Locus plot

Note that the scales indicate real frequency (log scale) and magnitude (log or dB scale) units, instead of the
logarithm of these values which would be the case if the standard HP Prime plot mechanism would be used.

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3 Process transfer functions

When starting the app or pressing the Symb button, the HP Prime will not open the standard Symbolic View but
will open the ‘Process Transfer Function (open loop)’ view.

You can enter a maximum of five Transfer functions (a transfer function is the Laplace transform of the time
response of a process when a Dirac function is applied at its input at time = 0).

Select one process (radio buttons at the left) before pressing OK

 Use S (capital S) as the symbol to denote the complex variable. Note that this will not refer to (real) HP
Prime HOME variable S
 A time delay is entered as a factor e^(-T*S) in the numerator, with T being a number representing the
time delay

4 Angle measure

Press Shift Symb to open Symbolic Setup View and select the angle measure (standard HP Prime view).

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5 Plot Setup

Press Shift Plot to open the settings menu, which consists of 4 pages.

 Note that the HP Prime will not open the standard Plot Setup View (which you won’t need).
 Alternatively, while a plot is displayed, you can directly access the relevant settings (frequency domain, time
domain or root locus) by tapping the Set soft key.

5.1 Frequency domain settings (page 1)

Angular frequency range

Enter minimum and maximum frequency

Logarithmic scales unit (for plot types with logarithmic magnitude scales)
• Log: logarithmic scale
• dB: decibel scale

Second response plot

• None: single plot only, of the open loop frequency response (process with controller, if controller
present). The plot is drawn in blue.
• W/h controller: plots the open loop frequency response of the process without controller (only drawn if
a controller present). The plot is drawn in purple.
• Unity feedback loop: plots the closed loop frequency response (unity feedback loop). The plot is drawn
in dark red.

This setting effects all frequency domain plot types. For instance, in the Bode plot, with “unity feedback loop”
selected, this produces the following plot:

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Function plotted in blue: open loop

response

Function plotted in dark red: unity feedback

loop response

Bode plot

Nyquist plot aspect ratio after optimizing

This setting will force a ‘square’ zoom (equal Real and Imaginary scales) each time the app optimizes the chart
scales (Nyquist plot only).

• Free: no imposed aspect ratio

• Square: real and imaginary axis use same scale

Note that chart scales are sometimes optimized automatically (e.g. always after you changed plot setup). You
can also manually optimize chart scales.

Nyquist plot: show M1.3 and ‘Deviation Ratio 1’ circles

• None: do not show any additional information
• M1.3: show M1.3 circle (all points on the open loop plot resulting in a unity feedback loop amplitude
ratio of 1.3)
• M1.3, DR1: show M1.3 circle and ‘Deviation Ratio 1’ circle

A note on the ‘Deviation Ratio 1’ circle: when a

disturbance signal is applied to the process, it depends
on the angular frequency of that disturbance whether
Open loop plot:
controlling the process (closed loop) will reduce the
point on the
effect of that disturbance on the process output
M1.3 circle
(compared with the uncontrolled, open loop process).

All points of the open loop plot: Unity feedback

loop plot:
➢ On the DR1 circle: controlling the process
Amplitude 1.3
(closed loop) has no effect
➢ within the DR1 circle: controlling the process
(closed loop) is harmful
➢ outside the DR1 circle: controlling the process (closed loop) is useful Nyquist plot

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5.2 Time domain settings (page 2)

Time range
Enter minimum and maximum time

Apply reference change or disturbance as input

• Reference change: apply a reference change
• Disturbance: apply a disturbance between controller output and process input

Note that the input will be plotted in black if it is a reference change, and in dark yellow if it is a disturbance.

Input signal: response to

• Dirac pulse
• Unit step
• Unit ramp

Response plot
Plots the process output for

• Open loop
• Unity feedback loop

Note that process output is always plotted in red (for open loop as well as unity feedback loop response).

Auxiliary plot
• Error signal: show the error signal (controller input) on the optional second chart. This plot is drawn in
gray
• Controller output: show controller output on the optional second chart. This plot is drawn in green

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5.3 Root locus plot settings (page 3)

Gain range
Root locus plots take the controller open loop gain as a ‘center point’ (if no controller is present, then this
center point gain will be ‘one’). With the gain range setting, you define how wide the app needs to set the gain
range for calculating roots. Options:

• Controller gain x 0.5 to 2

• Controller gain x 0.2 to 5
• Controller gain x 0.1 to 10
• Controller gain x 0.05 to 20
• Controller gain x 0.02 to 50
• Controller gain x 0.01 to 1 (gain < controller gain only)
• Controller gain x 1 to 100 (gain > controller gain only)

Note that gain is not increased linearly (adding a fixed step) but by applying a calculated factor, based on gain
range and sample size (see next).

Sample size
Choose between 50, 100, 200, 500 or 1000 samples. The more samples, the slower the calculation.

Mark
• Dot
• Crosshair
• Circle

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5.4 General settings (page 4)

Set ω and time scales

• Keep current: do not change the angular frequency or time scales when re-plotting
• Default ω or t range: reset the corresponding (ω or time) scale, the first time a plot is performed after
o button Plot is pressed to start a new plot
o button Symb is pressed to edit transfer functions or button Symb Setup is pressed
o controller type is changed or controller settings are changed (View menu)
o plot type is changed (View menu)

Note that this setting affects the Bode and time domain response plots only. It has no impact on Nyquist or
Nichols plots because these plots (which do not have frequency or time scales) always use the ω or time ranges
defined in plot setup to create a plot.

The first time a plot is performed after a Plot Setup (this menu), ω or time scales for that plot will always be
reset to their defaults (irrespective of this setting).

Optimize other scales

• Manual: scales are not optimized automatically when re-plotting
• Auto: optimize other (non- ω or time) scales, the first time a plot is performed after
o same actions as described under previous paragraph (‘Set ω and time scales’)
o zooming, dragging, layout change (Bode and time domain response plots only)

For Bode and time domain response plots, each time the ω or time range is reset to the default range, other
scales are automatically optimized again as well.

Custom zoom factor

Enter a zoom factor between 1.05 and 10. This zoom factor will be applied when zooming in or out using the +
or - buttons (only).

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6 Selecting and setting up a controller

Press View. A custom Views Menu will open.

Select option 1 (Set controller) and either select a controller type or recall a previously stored controller setup.

6.1 Selecting a controller type

You can either decide not to use a controller at all (option 1), or to use a controller with proportional (P),
integrating (I) or derivative (D) terms applied to the error signal (or a combination of these terms – options 2 to
5). The derivative term can be replaced by a lead network as well (see further), which will attenuate the
controller’s response for very high frequencies (options 6 and 7).

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Example: select ‘PID controller’ in the ‘Set controller’ list. The controller setup screen will be displayed:

The currently active settings for static gain

and integrator and differentiator time
constants are displayed and can be
changed.

You have the option to store this setup for

later use (up to 9 setups can be saved) or
you can select ‘do not store’ from the
dropdown.

You can now change the static gain (proportional term) and the integrator and differentiator time constants.

The corresponding controller Transfer Function (which the app will construct) will then be:

C(S) = GAIN * (1 + 1 / τi S) * (1 + τd S)

6.2 Recalling a previously stored controller setup

In the Views menu, select option 1 (Set controller) and then select option 8 (Recall setup) in the ‘Set controller’
list.

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Example: recall the controller setup previously stored in settings 9. The controller setup screen will be displayed:

According to this example, a ‘PI+lead network’ controller setup was stored in settings 9. This is essentially a PID
controller with a correction (based on the value for γ) applied to the higher frequency range.

You can now change the static gain (proportional term), the integrator and differentiator time constants and the
lead compensation factor γ.

The corresponding controller Transfer Function (which the app will construct) will be:

C(S) = GAIN * (1 + 1 / τi S) * (1 + τd S) / (1 + (τd / γ) S)

For γ = 1, this controller will behave like a PI-type controller. If γ is infinity, then the controller will behave like a
PID controller. Typically, γ ranges from 2 to 20.

For a given γ, the amplitude in the high frequency range will slowly approach γ times the static gain (GAIN * γ),
and this for frequencies higher then γ / τd, instead of going to infinity as would be the case for a pure PID
controller. The phase angle will approach zero for very high frequencies, instead of +90° (pure PID controller).

• The lower γ, the lower the maximum phase lead. This maximum phase lead will also be obtained for a
lower frequency.

The Bode diagrams below show amplitude and phase characteristics for two controllers with same values for
gain, integrator and differentiator constants (resp. 35, 0.3 and 0.1). The left Bode diagram represents a pure PID
controller, whereas the right plot represents a PI controller with lead compensation (γ = 12).

The right Bode diagram clearly shows that for ω = 5000 rad/s (marker 2), the indicated gain is 420, which is
35 * 12 = gain * y and the phase angle is almost 0°. The maximum phase lead (0.293 π rad) is reached for
ω = 39 rad/s.

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PID controller PI controller with lead compensation

Note: in order to obtain these plots, set the process transfer function to ‘1 * 1’.

7 Selecting a plot type

Press View to open the custom Views Menu and select option 2 (Set plot type).

Then, choose the desired plot type from the menu.

Note: associated functionality (zooming etc.) will be discussed globally in a next section.

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8 Frequency and time domain plots

8.1 Plot types

Nyquist plot

This is a polar plot, with linear scales, of the transfer function C(jω) * P(jω). In the sample screenshot below, the
plot for the transfer function of the unity feedback loop is also shown, as is the M1.3 circle (see section about
settings).
Marker info for
Unity feedback loop

Marker 2
Color coding for plots: blue is open loop,
purple is open loop with inactive controller
(not shown), red is unity feedback loop

Nichols plot

This is a magnitude / phase angle plot of the transfer function C(jω) * P(jω). The magnitude (vertical scale) is
logarithmic.

In the sample screenshot below, no secondary response plot is selected (see section about settings).

Color coding for plots: blue is open loop,

purple is open loop with inactive controller
(not shown), red is unity feedback loop (not
shown)

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Bode plot

This is a frequency domain response plot for a given transfer function.

Magnitude (logarithmic or dB scale) and phase angle are plotted on separate charts.

Marker 2

Magnitude
Marker 1

Phase angle

Color coding for plots: blue is open loop,

purple is open loop with inactive controller
(not shown), red is unity feedback loop

Time domain response plot

As mentioned before, you can choose between reference input change and disturbance, and the change can be
a Dirac pulse, a unit step or a unit ramp.

In the examples below, the unity feedback response plot is shown, together with (lower chart) the controller
output (you can also visualize the error signal).

Responses to a reference change

Color coding for plots

Upper chart:
• Black: reference change as input
• Dark yellow: disturbance as input (not shown)
• Red: output
Lower chart
• Gray: error signal (not shown)
• Green: controller output

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Responses to a disturbance Responses to a disturbance: Responses to a reference change:

underdamped underdamped

Note: time domain response plots are based on the calculation of an Inverse Laplace Transform. Standard HP
Prime function ‘invlaplace’ is used for that, but it is not always capable to perform the calculation. If it fails, you
will receive an error message.

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8.2 Markers

All frequency and time domain plots have two markers, labeled marker 1 (M1) and marker 2 (M2). Markers are
associated with a set angular frequency (ω) or, for time domain response plots, with a set time.

• Bode plots and time domain response plots display these markers as two vertical lines. The active
marker (if within the visible frequency range) is shown in a bright red color. The inactive marker is
shown in a very light red color. Marker 1 is always positioned to the left of marker 2.
• Nyquist and Nichols plots display the markers as a cross hair with a square around it. For marker 2, this
square is tilted 45 degrees. In order not to overload the screen, only the active marker (M1 or M2) will
be visible (if two plots are currently shown, then each plot will have its active marker).

If the status line (see further) currently displays the change in magnitude and phase between the two
marker positions for a plot, then the two markers (M1 and M2) for that plot are shown instead.

The status line on top of the chart displays more info about the active marker / about the markers.

Selecting the active marker

Tap the M2 button to alternate between marker 1 and 2. If marker 2 is active, a square dot will be shown
to the right of the soft key ‘M2’ label.

For Bode plots and time domain response plots (only), you can also activate a marker by tapping on a marker
and holding for a second. The marker position will not move.

Inactive
marker
Active
marker

Bode plot with marker 1 active

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Moving the markers

To move a marker, you can

• Tap the screen. This will move the active marker. If this would move the active marker beyond the other
marker (M1 is always positioned left of M2), the other marker will become active and will be moved
instead
• Press the left  or right  cursor keys to decrease or increase the set angular frequency (or time)
for the active marker, moving that marker
• Press and hold the left  or right  cursor keys: after half a second, the active marker position will
start moving left or right at a constant speed. This speed will increase with a factor ten after another 1.5
seconds
• Press Shift and then press the left  or right  cursor keys to move the active marker to the left or
right border of the chart (Bode plots and time domain response plots) or to the outer ends of the plot
(Nyquist and Nichols plots)

Nyquist plot. Marker 2 is active and is shown

for the two plots currently displayed

• Tap the Go To soft key and enter an angular frequency or time (time domain response plots) to set
markers.
1
Tap OK

Note that, as M1 is always positioned left of

M2, a marker will never be able to move
beyond the position of the other marker.

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8.3 The status line

On top of the screen, a status line displays more information about the (active) marker(s).

Information that can be viewed:

Frequency domain response plots:

• Magnitude and phase angle for a single plot (e.g. open loop plot), for the angular frequency at the active
marker position
• Magnitude change (ratio) and phase angle change (difference) between the two plots currently shown
(if applicable), for the angular frequency at the active marker position
• Magnitude change (ratio) and phase angle change (difference) for a plot, between the angular
frequencies at marker 1 and marker 2

Marker 1: positioned at ω = 3; magnitude (G)

and phase angle (ϕ) for open loop response
(blue) displayed in selected units (dB and
Radians, respectively)

Time domain response plot:

• Magnitude of the input (reference change or disturbance) at a point in time indicated by the active
marker position
• Magnitude of the output at a point in time indicated by the active marker position
• Magnitude of the controller output / error signal (depending on Plot Setup) at a point in time indicated
by the active marker position
• Magnitude change (difference) between two points in time as indicated by the two markers

Markers positioned at first and second output

top (red) : time difference is 0.148 seconds,
change in magnitude = -89

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Cycling through the information

To show information about the active marker: press the cursor up  key repeatedly.

• Frequency domain response plots: this first shows magnitude and phase for plot 1, and then, if currently
two plots are displayed, for plot 2 (each time in the color of the plot). Finally, magnitude change (ratio)
and phase angle change (difference) is displayed going from plot 1 to plot 2 (in black)

Marker 1: positioned at ω = 5;
magnitude change (G x refers to a ratio, log
scale) and phase angle change (Δϕ) from
open loop response to unity feedback loop
response is displayed in selected units (log
scale and Radians, respectively)

• Time domain response plots: this cycles through input magnitude, then output magnitude, and then
error signal magnitude or controller output magnitude (depending on Plot Setup)

To show the change in magnitude (and, frequency domain plots only: phase angle) between the two marker
positions M1 and M2: press the cursor down  key repeatedly.

• Frequency domain response plots): this first shows magnitude change (ratio) and phase angle change
(difference) for plot 1, and then, if currently two plots are displayed, for plot 2
• Time domain response plots: this alternatively shows magnitude change for input and output plot
(always as a difference, not a ratio)

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8.4 Zooming

Bode plots and time domain plots

Zooming is performed by either

• Performing a two-finger pinch zoom gesture (the zoom is animated by shrinking / stretching the graphic
object representing the plot)
• Pressing the + or – key. This will zoom in or out using a custom zoom factor as entered in plot Setup.
• Tapping the Zoom soft key

Zooming is always performed horizontally (Bode plot: ω zoom, time domain: time zoom).

We will use the Bode plot to describe the zoom menu options, but the time domain response plot zoom works
in the same way. When tapping the Zoom soft key, the zoom menu opens:

Zooming options available:

• Align the plot with marker 1 or marker 2, but do not change the scale

You will be presented three options: align the left side of the
scale, the right side or the center of the plot with the current
position (angular frequency ω) of the selected marker

• Center on frequency: you will be asked to enter an angular frequency (ω) to center the plot

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• Zoom to markers: rescale such that the current position of markers 1 and 2 (angular frequency ω) will
coincide with the left and right border of the plot, respectively
• Zoom:

Select the desired zoom factor from the submenu.

You can either zoom in or zoom out by a factor of 2, 5 or 10

• Zoom to ω range: enter an angular frequency range to zoom to

• Zoom to default ω range: plot according to the ω range defined in Plot Setup

Nyquist plots
Zooming is performed by either

• Performing a two-finger pinch zoom gesture (the zoom is animated by shrinking / stretching the graphic
object representing the plot). If the zoom gesture is performed diagonally, the same zoom factor is used
in the two dimensions. You can also zoom horizontally or vertically by performing a horizontal or vertical
zoom gesture.
• Pressing the + or – key. This will zoom in or out using a custom zoom factor as entered in plot Setup.
• Tapping the Zoom soft key. This opens the zoom menu for Nyquist plots:

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Zooming options available:

• Center on active marker

If two plots are currently displayed, this will center on the active marker for the plot selected in the
status line.

Only when the app cannot decide (when the status line is currently
displaying magnitude and phase angle difference between the two
plots), you will be asked to choose a plot

• Center on (Re, Im) point: enter the coordinates of a point on the complex plane

• Zoom, horizontal zoom, vertical zoom:

Select the desired zoom factor from the submenu.

You can either zoom in or zoom out by a factor of 2, 5 or 10

• Square: makes the horizontal and vertical scales equal

• Square, M1.3 circle: makes the horizontal and vertical scales equal and centers the plot around the M1.3
circle

Nyquist plot, centered around the

M1.3 circle. Marker 2 is active and
shown for the two plots (open loop
and unity feedback loop)

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Nichols plots
Zooming is always performed vertically (the horizontal scale is fixed and runs from -π to π radians, in the
selected angle unit).

Zooming is performed by either

• Performing a two-finger pinch zoom gesture (the zoom is animated by shrinking / stretching the graphic
object representing the plot)
• Pressing the + or – key. This will zoom in or out using a custom zoom factor as entered in plot Setup.
• Tapping the Zoom soft key. This opens the zoom menu for Nichols plots:

Zooming options available:

• Center on active marker (as with Nyquist plots, if two plots are currently displayed, this will center on
the active marker for the plot selected in the status line)

• Center on magnitude: enter a magnitude to center the plot vertically

• Zoom (this will perform a vertical zoom only)

Select the desired zoom factor from the submenu.

You can either zoom in or zoom out by a factor of 2, 5 or 10

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8.5 Scrolling

Place a finger on the screen and either

• drag the plot in the desired direction

• slide your finger. End the slide and re-plot by tapping the screen

Animation during dragging or sliding

Bode plot and time domain response plot: animated scrolling is always performed horizontally (Bode plot: ω
zoom, time domain plot: time scroll).

Nichols plot: scrolling is performed vertically, as the horizontal scale is fixed and runs from -π to π radians, in the
selected angle unit.

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8.6 Optimizing

Optimizing adjusts the chart scales in such a way that the plot(s) fit(s) best on the charts.

• Bode plots and time domain response plot: this optimizes the vertical scale, based on the ω or time
scale range displayed horizontally
• Nyquist plots: this optimizes the horizontal and vertical scales, based on the ω range selected for
plotting
• Nichols plots: this optimizes the vertical scale, based on the ω range selected for plotting (the horizontal
scale is fixed and runs from -π to π radians, in the selected angle unit).

Optimizing is either performed automatically (if enabled in Plot Settings – general settings) or manually.

To optimize the plots manually: tap the Optim↕ softkey (or, for Nyquist plots, the Optim softkey).

If manually optimizing and currently two plots are shown, a popup will ask you to select the plot(s) to optimize
for.

• Frequency domain plots (Bode, Nyquist, Nichols)

If currently two plots are being shown, you will be asked whether to optimize for the open loop plot,
the secondary plot (as selected in Plot Setup) or both plots.

• Time domain response plots

You will be asked whether to optimize for the input plot, the process output plot or for both plots. The
auxiliary plot (error signal or controller output, depending on Plot Setup) will always be optimized at that
time.

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8.7 Changing chart layout

Bode plots and time domain plots normally draw two charts: an upper chart and a lower chart. What is actually
plot can be selected in Plot Setup, but it comes down to:

• Bode plots: upper chart shows magnitude plots, whereas lower chart shows phase angle plots
• Time domain plots: upper chart plots reference change or disturbance, together with process output,
whereas lower chart plots either error signal or controller output

However, you can enlarge the upper or the lower plot to occupy the whole screen.

Press the More soft key and select a layout from the submenu that will open.

• Bode plot: select one of these options:

• Time domain plot currently plotting disturbance and process output on the upper chart and controller
output on the lower chart: select from

Alternatively, you can also press Shift and then press the up  cursor key to toggle between two-chart
display and the enlarged upper chart. Or press Shift and then press the down  cursor key to toggle
between two-chart display and the enlarged lower chart.

Major and minor

grid lines (darker
and lighter gray)

Bode plot: enlarged magnitude plot, second

marker indicating the resonance frequency of
the unity feedback response with magnitude
(dB) and phase angle in radians

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Major and minor

grid lines (darker
and lighter gray)

Time domain plot: enlarged upper chart,

plotting an applied unit step (in black) at the
reference input, together with the resulting
process output. First marker indicating an
overshoot of 63% after 0.15 seconds. So, some
room for improvement here !

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9 Root Locus Plots

This is a scatter plot, in the complex plane, of the roots of the unity feedback loop characteristic equation, for a
given range of open loop gain values, centered around the controller gain (see Plot Setup).

Roots are indicated by small circles in a dark red color (instead of circles, you can also select a crosshair or a dot
marker).

Root locus plot. Characteristic equation for unity

feedback loop has 5 roots (for open loop gain equal
to 684).

Note: characteristic equation for unity feedback

loop equals D(s) + K * N(s) with
• N(s): numerator of open loop transfer function
• D(s): denominator of open loop transfer function

9.1 Highlighting roots

The root locus plot allows you to highlight all the roots for a selectable open loop gain value and it will display
information about these roots in the status line.

Highlighted roots are shown with a large dark gray circle, with a crosshair inside, around them. For one of the
highlighted roots this large circle is shown in blue and more information about this root is displayed in the status
line.

Viewing roots for a specific open loop gain

To change the selected open loop gain, you can

• Tap the screen, close to a root. This will select the open loop gain for that root and highlight all the roots
for this open loop gain. The tapped root will be highlighted in blue, indicating that information about
that root will be displayed in the status line
• Press the left  or right  cursor keys to decrease or increase the open loop gain
• Press and hold the left  or right  cursor keys: after half a second, the selected open loop gain
will start decreasing or increasing at a constant speed. This speed will further increase after another 1.5
seconds

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• Press Shift and then press the left  cursor key to set the open loop gain to the lowest value in the
open loop gain range, as selected in Plot Setup
 If the currently selected open loop gain is greater than the ‘center position’ (which is the controller
gain, see Plot Setup) then this center position will be selected instead
• Press Shift and then press the right  cursor key to set the open loop gain to the highest value in the
open loop gain range, as selected in Plot Setup
 If the currently selected open loop gain is less than the ‘center position’ (which is the controller
gain, see Plot Setup) then this center position will be selected instead
• Tap the Go To soft key and the desired open loop gain. Then, tap OK

Note that you can select any open loop gain value – this includes gain values outside the K-range selected for
the plot.

9.2 The status line

The status line contains information about the selected root. More specifically, it displays

• the open loop gain (‘K’)

• the number of roots (characteristic equation of the unity feedback loop) and the selected root (s / n)
• the value of the root (either real or complex)
• whether the system is stable (all roots having a negative real part) or not stable. If stable, the status line
is green, if not it will turn red

Cycling through the roots for a selected open loop gain

• Tap the screen, close to a root (note: this may change the selected open loop gain)
• Press the up  or down  cursor keys

The selected root will be highlighted in blue and information about it will be displayed in the status line.

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9.3 Zooming

Zooming is performed by either

• Performing a two-finger pinch zoom gesture (the zoom is animated by shrinking / stretching the graphic
object representing the plot). If the zoom gesture is performed diagonally, the same zoom factor is used
in the two dimensions. You can also zoom horizontally or vertically by performing a horizontal or vertical
zoom gesture.
• Pressing the + or – key. This will zoom in or out using a custom zoom factor as entered in plot Setup.
• Tapping the Zoom soft key. This opens the zoom menu for Root Locus plots:

Zooming options available:

• Center on highlighted root

The root currently highlighted in blue will be put in the middle of the chart. Scales will not change

• Center on (Re, Im) point: enter the coordinates of a point on the complex plane

The selected point will be placed in the middle of the chart. Scales will not change

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• Zoom, horizontal zoom, vertical zoom:

Select the desired zoom factor from the submenu.

You can either zoom in or zoom out by a factor of 2, 5 or 10

• Square: makes the horizontal and vertical scales equal

9.4 Scrolling

Place a finger on the screen and either

• drag the plot in the desired direction

• slide your finger. End the slide and re-plot by tapping the screen

Scrolling is animated by moving the graphic object representing the plot in the indicated direction before
replotting occurs.

9.5 Optimizing

Optimizing adjusts the chart scales in such a way that the plot fits best on the chart.

Optimizing is either performed automatically (if enabled in Plot Settings – general settings) or manually.

To optimize the plots manually: tap the Optim softkey.

If manually optimizing, you can choose how to optimize the plot:

The second option will optimize the plot, only considering the highlighted roots (the roots for the selected open
loop gain value).

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10 Active keys

When a plot is currently displayed, the number of active keys is limited.

An active key means that a key press is detected by the program, resulting in a specific action.

These are the active keys and the corresponding actions:

• Apps, App Info, Home, Home Settings: standard global view is displayed
• Symb Setup, Num Setup: standard app view is displayed
• Plot Setup: control systems app settings are displayed (instead of standard app plot setup view)
• Symb: display transfer functions (instead of standard app parametric equations view)
• Plot: launch interactive plotting routine (instead of standard app plot view)
• Num: standard app view is displayed, except when Root Locus Plot is currently selected as plot type:
pressing Num will then display a matrix with information about the calculated roots
• Cursor keys     : custom functionality (as explained above)
• + and - keys : zoom in and out
• Shift: toggles Shift status (while in interactive plotting mode)
• View: displays custom Views menu
• Esc: exits interactive plot and returns to Home View (to abort plotting while the plot is being drawn:
keep holding down the Esc key until you return to the Home screen)

The ON key exits interactive plotting as well, but this is a HP Prime system function, so this key is not handled by
the ‘control systems’ app.

All other keys have no function at all, except that pressing any key resets the Key Shift status.

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11 Show parametric equations

From the Home view, Press View to open the custom Views Menu and select option 3 (Show parametric Eq.) to
open the standard HP Prime Symbolic View showing the parametric equations set by the ‘control systems’ app.

Equations shown here are not used for

plotting. Their only use is to provide data for
display in numerical View.

These equations are shown for your information only because they are set by the app, based on the controller
settings and process transfer function entered.

Note that Root Locus plots do not use parametric equations.

11.1 Frequency domain response plots (Nyquist, Nichols, Bode)

In all equations, all instances of complex variable ‘S’ in the Transfer Functions are replaced with expression ‘i * T’
(i refers to the imaginary unit, T refers to the real variable T used as independent variable in the parametric
equations).

• X1(T): and Y1(T): equations for open loop transfer function

• X2(T) and Y2(T): equations for transfer function for the second plot (if selected in Plot Setup)

Please refer to next section (Numerical view) for the definition of these equations

11.2 Time domain response plots

• X1(T): input value (reference change or disturbance, depending on Plot Setup)

• Y1(T): process output value
• X2(T): error signal value
• Y2(T): controller output value

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12 Numerical view

Press Shift Num to open Numeric Setup View and set numerical range etc. (standard HP Prime view).

Note: if the set plot type is Root Locus, then the settings in Numeric Setup View will have no effect.

12.1 Frequency and time domain plots

Press Num to open Numerical View (standard HP Prime view).

Information displayed in the respective table columns:

Plot type T X1 Y1 X2 Y2
Nyquist ω Transfer function - Transfer function - Transfer function - Transfer function -
real part, plot 1 imag. Part, plot 1 real part, plot 2 imag. Part, plot 2
Nichols ω Phase angle plot 1 Magnitude plot 1 Phase angle plot 2 Magnitude plot 2
(value or dB) (value or dB)
Bode ω Magnitude plot 1 Phase angle plot 1 Magnitude plot 2 Phase angle plot 2
(value or dB) (value or dB)
Time domain time Input value Process output Error signal value Controller output
value value
ω: angular frequency

Note: for frequency domain plots, columns X2, Y2 are set to ‘0’ if currently no secondary plot is selected (see
‘Second response plot’ in Plot Setup)

12.2 Root locus plots

Press Num to view a read-only matrix with information about all roots calculated as per settings in Plot Setup.

The matrix contains all roots of the characteristic equation of the unity feedback loop transfer function, for a
given range of open loop gain values, centered around the controller gain.

Information displayed in the respective table columns:

(no label) 1 2 3
Root sequence number K-value (gain) Real part of root Imag. Part of root

Note that there will be as many entries for a given K value as there are roots.

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13 Retrieving equations

The Control Systems App calculates a set of equations as a base for plotting, based on the transfer functions and
controller settings entered, the type of plot (frequency domain, time domain or root locus) and the current
settings.

You can retrieve these equations, either to a special variable ‘currEq’ (current equation) or to the home screen.

13.1 Storing an equation in variable ‘currEq’

From the Home view, Press View to open the custom Views Menu and select option 4 (Set ‘currEq’ variable).

Note that it is not possible to return a value to Home View from the Views menu.

Select which type of equation you want to retrieve:

Then, select the equation you want. It will be stored in variable ‘currEq’

1. Transfer functions (frequency domain):

The equations returned will be functions of i * T (imaginary

unit x Home variable T, with T representing angular
frequency)

Note: the open loop transfer function is the combined

transfer function of controller and process

2. Time domain equations (inverse Laplace Transforms):

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The equations returned will be functions of Home variable T,

representing time

Note: the input can either be a reference change or a

disturbance (as defined in Plot Setup)

3. Root Locus Plot equations

The equations returned will be functions of CAS variable s

Note: the characteristic equation for a unity feedback loop equals D(s) + K * N(s) with

• N(s): numerator of open loop transfer function

• D(s): denominator of open loop transfer function

13.2 Returning an equation to Home View

Execute app program ‘RetrieveEq’ (either type the program name or select it from the Control Systems App
program catalog, as shown). Note that you can also call this procedure from inside a user program.

You will be guided through the same menu options as described in previous section.

The selected equation will be returned to Home View and it will be stored in variable ‘currEq’.

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13.3 Retrieving an Equation from within a program

To retrieve and use an equation from within a user program, you may prefer to call function ‘RetrieveOneEq’
instead (available in the Control Systems App program catalog).

This procedure accepts two parameters: equation type and equation, allowing you to bypass user input required
with procedure ‘RetrieveEq’, as outlined in the table below.

The selected equation will be returned to Home View and it will be stored in variable ‘currEq’.

Parameter 1 (equation type) Parameter 2 (selected equation)

allowed values allowed values
0: let user select equation type 0: let user select equation (popup menu) - same as
(popup menu): same as calling calling procedure ‘RetrieveEq’
procedure ‘RetrieveEq’
1: Transfer function 0: let user select equation (popup menu) - same as
calling procedure ‘RetrieveEq’
1: Open loop TF
2: Controller TF
3: Process TF
4: Unity feedback TF
2: Time domain 0: let user select equation (popup menu) - same as
calling procedure ‘RetrieveEq’
1: Reference input
2: Process output
3: Error signal
4: Controller output
3: Root locus 0: let user select equation (popup menu) - same as
calling procedure ‘RetrieveEq’
1: Numerator of open loop TF
2: Denominator of open loop TF

Sample program ‘CharEquationCoeff’

A small demo program ‘CharEquationCoeff’ taking one parameter, demonstrating how to call procedure
‘RetrieveOneEq, is available from the user program catalog. Refer to the procedure comments for more
information.

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14 Utility “DrawGrid”

Use: draws a horizontal and vertical grid (either logarithmic, in dB or linear) on the HP Prime screen or any of
the graphic objects (G0 to G9).

The program is called by the ‘control systems’ app, but it is an independent program that is available for general
use from the user program catalog.

To draw a grid, use this syntax:

DrawGrid(graphicObject, range, pixelRange, horizontalScaleSettings, verticalScaleSettings);

With

GraphicObject: one of the graphic objects G0 to G9 (G0 represents the screen)

Range: {Xlow, Xhigh, Ylow, Yhigh}

→ a list indicating lowest and highest values to be displayed in the grid. For linear scales, this corresponds
to minimum and maximum values in Cartesian (user) coordinates.
Note: lowest values correspond to the lower left corner of grid

PixelRange: {Xlow, Xrange, Ylow, Yrange}

→ a list indicating starting pixel and number of pixels to be used for the grid, in the horizontal (X) and
vertical (Y) dimension.
Note: Xlow and Ylow correspond to the upper left of the grid

horizontalScaleSettings: { [scaleType, [printLabels, [labelsInGrid, [lineUnits, [scaleAsFraction, [log1only,

[unitSymbol, [multSymbol, [color, [majorColor]]]]]]]]]] }

verticalScaleSettings: same list format as horizontalScaleSettings

With

Par. Parameter name Description

No
1 scaleType 0 = logarithmic, 1 = dB (decibel), 2 = linear
Note: If scaleType is not present (empty list), the (vertical or horizontal)
grid will not be drawn.
2 printLabels 0 = no value labels, 1 = print value labels.
Default if parameter is not present: print labels
3 labelsInGrid 0 = labels are printed outside the grid area, 1 = print labels within grid
area. Note: label spacing is automatically determined.
Default if parameter is not present: outside

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4 lineUnits Minimum grid line spacing. Note that spacing will automatically increase
(to the lowest possible multiple of lineUnits) if the grid would become
too dense.
This parameter is used for dB and linear scales only, it is ignored for
logarithmic (non-dB) scales – refer to the ‘log1only’ parameter for
logarithmic scales.
Default if parameter is not present: 3 dB for dB scale, automatic grid
lines for linear scale.
You may also refer to the default by entering value -1 for this parameter.
5 scaleAsFraction 0 = print regular value labels, 1 = print value labels as fractions, e.g.
display ½ instead of 0.5 (only used for linear scales).
Default if parameter is not present: regular labels
6 log1only Only used for logarithmic scales. 0 = draw grid lines for 1 EXP n to 9 EXP
n.
1 = draw grid lines for 1 EXP n only (n: integer).
Note that grid lines are only drawn when the value range (scale) permits
it.
Default if parameter is not present: draw grid lines for 1…9 EXP n
7 unitSymbol Linear scales only. Unit symbol to be printed after the value label.
Default if parameter is not present: empty string
8 multSymbol Linear scales only. Symbol to be printed as part of the value label.
Especially useful with ‘scale as fraction’ display. For instance, with
multSymbol = “π”, value 3/2 will be printed as 3π/2.
Default if parameter is not present: empty string
9 gridLineColor Grid line color as an RGB value.
Default if parameter is not present: RGB(230, 230, 230) (light gray).
You may also refer to the default by entering value -1 for this parameter
10 majorGridLineColor Major grid line color as an RGB value.
Default if parameter is not present: RGB(200, 200, 200) (darker gray).
You may also refer to the default by entering value -1 for this parameter.

Note: as mentioned above, if horizontalScaleSettings or verticalScaleSettings is an empty list, the

corresponding (vertical or horizontal) grid will not be drawn.

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Example 1:

RECT();

DrawGrid(G0, {0.01, 1000, 0.1, 100}, {30, 290, 13, 102}, {0}, {1} );

WAIT();

Will display the following grid:

Notes:

1. The horizontal scale (from 0.01 to 1000) is logarithmic, whereas the vertical scale (from 0.1 to 100) is in
dB (1 dB = 20 LOG(value), as requested by the last two parameters {0} and {1}
2. Horizontal scale: the labels indicate the real values, not the logarithm of the values. When appropriate,
scientific format is used
3. Horizontal scale: note that vertical grid lines for 0.02, 0.05, 0.2, 0.5, 2, 5, 20, 50, … are also drawn. If the
scale permits it, even more grid lines will be drawn (1…9 EXP n)
4. Vertical scale: calibrated in dB. The lowest value (0.1) corresponds to -20 dB. As the (default) minimum
scale unit of 3 dB would result in a very dense grid, labels are printed every 12 dB. So, the lowest label
shown is the label for -12 dB
5. Major grid lines (having a label) are drawn a little darker, to clearly indicate which line a label belongs to

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Example 2:

RECT();

DrawGrid(G0, {0.01, 1000, 0.1, 100}, {30, 290, 13, 102}, {0, 0}, {1} );
DrawGrid(G0, {0.01, 1000, -1, 1}, {30, 290, 130, 90}, {0, 1}, {2, 1, 0, 1/8, 1, 0, "", "π"} );
WAIT();

Will display the following grid

This leaves some room for a status line at the top and a softkey line at the bottom.

Note that the second grid has a linear scale, calibrated in fractions of PI. The minimum grid line spacing is
specified as 1/8, but it is automatically set to ¼ because of the scale given.

Also note that, as the two grids share the same horizontal scale, labels are only drawn once.

Sample program ‘TestGrid’

A small demo program 'TestGrid', taking no parameters, is available from the user program catalog.

It demonstrates calling grid utility 'DrawGrid',

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15 Installation

Before you start: make sure your calculator is ON, connected to your computer via USB and visible in the HP
connectivity kit.

 If the HP connectivity kit is not yet installed on your computer, you will need to install it first. Please
refer to HP’s documentation.

Installation procedure:

1. Unzip compressed folder “HP Prime-control systems.zip” and select the four items indicated in the
figure below, in File Explorer.

2. In the HP connectivity kit, make sure the ‘Calculators’

window is displayed. Then, drag the two items you
selected earlier to the free space below the content
tree.

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3. Check that
• the ‘Control Systems’ app is present in the
Application Library
• the other programs are present in the
‘Programs’ section of the content tree

4. Open the program catalog, select the Control Systems App and tap Edit
Verify that you see the screen below:

Perform the same action for the three programs in the Program Catalog.

=> If this step is not performed (after installation), the App may not start correctly.

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5. Press the Apps button. Select the Control Systems App (it could be at the bottom) and press Start

6. Press Enter. You should now see the app (custom) Symbolic View, where you can enter Transfer
Functions (see section about Process transfer functions).

The Control Systems app is now up and running.

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16 Known issues

16.1 View menu does not disappear

When pressing the View button while a program is still running, the View menu is only displayed when program
execution stops. This is typically the case when you press the View button while a Bode plot is being drawn.

If you don’t wait until the View menu appears before making a selection (by pressing a numeric button), this key
stroke is sent to the command line and the View menu does not disappear.

To correct this situation:

1. Power OFF the calculator and then power ON again

2. Press and hold the On Key while pressing the Symb key

The calculator performs a soft reset and the View menu will disappear.

16.2 Plotting becomes slow

After some time, plotting a Bode diagram can become a little slow.

If this happens, perform a soft reset (procedure explained earlier in this section).

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