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tunableGain

Tunable static gain block

Description

Model object for creating tunable static gains. tunableGain lets you parametrize tunable static gains for parameter studies or for automatic tuning with tuning commands such as systune or looptune.

tunableGain is part of the Control Design Block family of parametric models. Other Control Design Blocks include tunablePID, tunableSS, and tunableTF.

Creation

Description

example

blk = tunableGain(name,Ny,Nu) creates a parametric static gain block named name. This block has Ny outputs and Nu inputs. The tunable parameters are the gains across each of the Ny-by-Nu I/O channels.

example

blk = tunableGain(name,G) uses the double array G to dimension the block and initialize the tunable parameters.

Input Arguments

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Block Name, specified as a character vector such as 'K' or 'gain1'. (See Properties.)

Data Types: char

Number of outputs of the parametric static gain block blk, specified as nonnegative integer.

Data Types: double

Number of inputs of the parametric static gain block blk, specified as nonnegative integer.

Data Types: double

Initial values of the gain block parameters, specified as a double array. The number of rows and columns of G determine the number of inputs and outputs of blk.

Data Types: double

Properties

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blk.Gain is a param.Continuous object. For general information about the properties of the param.Continuous (Simulink Design Optimization) object blk.Gain, see the param.Continuous object reference page.

The following fields of blk.Gain are used when you tune blk using hinfstruct:

FieldDescription
Value

Current value of the gain matrix. For a block that has Ny outputs and Nu inputs, blk.Gain.Value is a Ny-by-Nu matrix.

If you use the G input argument to create blk, blk.Gain.Value initializes to the values of G. Otherwise, all entries of blk.Gain.Value initialize to zero.

hinfstruct (Robust Control Toolbox) tunes all entries in blk.Gain.Value except those whose values are fixed by blk.Gain.Free.

Default: Array of zero values

Free

Array of logical values determining whether the gain entries in blk.Gain.Value are fixed or free parameters.

  • If blk.Gain.Free(i,j) = 1, then blk.Gain.Value(i,j) is a tunable parameter.

  • If blk.Gain.Free(i,j) = 0, then blk.Gain.Value(i,j) is fixed.

Default: Array of 1 (true) values

Minimum

Minimum value of the parameter. This property places a lower bound on the tuned value of the parameter. For example, setting blk.Gain.Minimum = 1 ensures that all entries in the gain matrix have gain greater than 1.

Default: -Inf

Maximum

Maximum value of the parameter. This property places an upper bound on the tuned value of the parameter. For example, setting blk.Gain.Maximum = 100 ensures that all entries in the gain matrix have gain less than 100.

Default: Inf

Sample time. For continuous-time models, Ts = 0. For discrete-time models, Ts is a positive scalar representing the sampling period. This value is expressed in the unit specified by the TimeUnit property of the model. To denote a discrete-time model with unspecified sample time, set Ts = -1.

Changing this property does not discretize or resample the model.

Units for the time variable, the sample time Ts, and any time delays in the model, specified as one of the following values:

  • 'nanoseconds'

  • 'microseconds'

  • 'milliseconds'

  • 'seconds'

  • 'minutes'

  • 'hours'

  • 'days'

  • 'weeks'

  • 'months'

  • 'years'

Changing this property has no effect on other properties, and therefore changes the overall system behavior. Use chgTimeUnit to convert between time units without modifying system behavior.

Input channel names, specified as one of the following:

  • Character vector — For single-input models, for example, 'controls'.

  • Cell array of character vectors — For multi-input models.

Alternatively, use automatic vector expansion to assign input names for multi-input models. For example, if sys is a two-input model, enter:

sys.InputName = 'controls';

The input names automatically expand to {'controls(1)';'controls(2)'}.

You can use the shorthand notation u to refer to the InputName property. For example, sys.u is equivalent to sys.InputName.

Input channel names have several uses, including:

  • Identifying channels on model display and plots

  • Extracting subsystems of MIMO systems

  • Specifying connection points when interconnecting models

Input channel units, specified as one of the following:

  • Character vector — For single-input models, for example, 'seconds'.

  • Cell array of character vectors — For multi-input models.

Use InputUnit to keep track of input signal units. InputUnit has no effect on system behavior.

Input channel groups for assigning the input channels of MIMO systems, specified as a structure. In this structure, field names are the group names, and field values are the input channels belonging to each group. For example:

sys.InputGroup.controls = [1 2];
sys.InputGroup.noise = [3 5];

creates input groups named controls and noise that include input channels 1, 2 and 3, 5, respectively. You can then extract the subsystem from the controls inputs to all outputs using:

sys(:,'controls')

Output channel names, specified as one of the following:

  • Character vector — For single-output models. For example, 'measurements'.

  • Cell array of character vectors — For multi-output models.

Alternatively, use automatic vector expansion to assign output names for multi-output models. For example, if sys is a two-output model, enter:

sys.OutputName = 'measurements';

The output names automatically expand to {'measurements(1)';'measurements(2)'}.

You can use the shorthand notation y to refer to the OutputName property. For example, sys.y is equivalent to sys.OutputName.

Output channel names have several uses, including:

  • Identifying channels on model display and plots

  • Extracting subsystems of MIMO systems

  • Specifying connection points when interconnecting models

Output channel units, specified as one of the following:

  • Character vector — For single-output models. For example, 'seconds'.

  • Cell array of character vectors — For multi-output models.

Use OutputUnit to keep track of output signal units. OutputUnit has no effect on system behavior.

Output channel groups for assigning the output channels of MIMO systems, specified as a structure. In this structure, field names are the group names, and field values are the output channels belonging to each group. For example:

sys.OutputGroup.temperature = [1];
sys.OutputGroup.measurement = [3 5];

creates output groups named temperature and measurement that include output channels 1, and 3, 5, respectively. You can then extract the subsystem from all inputs to the measurement outputs using:

sys('measurement',:)

System name, specified as a character vector. For example, 'system_1'.

Any text that you want to associate with the system, stored as a string or a cell array of character vectors. The property stores whichever data type you provide. For instance, if sys1 and sys2 are dynamic system models, you can set their Notes properties as follows:

sys1.Notes = "sys1 has a string.";
sys2.Notes = 'sys2 has a character vector.';
sys1.Notes
sys2.Notes
ans = 

    "sys1 has a string."


ans =

    'sys2 has a character vector.'

Any type of data you want to associate with system, specified as any MATLAB data type.

Examples

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Create a 2-by-2 parametric gain block of the form

[g100g2]

where g1 and g2 are tunable parameters, and the off-diagonal elements are fixed to zero.

blk = tunableGain('gainblock',2,2);  % 2 outputs, 2 inputs
blk.Gain.Free = [1 0; 0 1];    % fix off-diagonal entries to zero

All entries in blk.Gain.Value initialize to zero. Initialize the diagonal values to 1 as follows.

blk.Gain.Value = eye(2);    % set diagonals to 1

Create a two-input, three-output parametric gain block and initialize all the parameter values to 1.

To do so, create a matrix to dimension the parametric gain block and initialize the parameter values.

G = ones(3,2);
blk = tunableGain('gainblock',G);

Create a 2–by-2 parametric gain block and assign names to the inputs.

blk = tunableGain('gainblock',2,2)   % 2 outputs, 2 inputs 
blk.InputName = {'Xerror','Yerror'}    % assign input names

Tips

  • Use the blk.Gain.Free field of blk to specify additional structure or fix the values of specific entries in the block. To fix the gain value from input i to output j, set blk.Gain.Free(i,j) = 0. To allow hinfstruct to tune this gain value, set blk.Gain.Free(i,j) = 1.

  • To convert a tunableGain parametric model to a numeric (non-tunable) model object, use model commands such as tf, zpk, or ss.

Version History

Introduced in R2016a

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