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07Physics to design

First Principles & Classical Tools

Connect physical models, diagrams, and approximations to controller design.

Foundational Tools

Mechanical models

Masses, springs, dampers, pendulums, vehicles, and robotics.

Electrical models

Circuits, motors, power converters, and sensors.

Process-control models

Tanks, reactors, heat exchangers, distillation columns, and transport delays.

Computing & network models

Queues, congestion control, admission control, web servers, and resource-management loops.

Biological models

Gene regulation, physiological feedback, neural circuits, and biological switching examples.

Pharmacokinetic models

Drug administration and compartment models connecting dose, concentration, and effect.

Population dynamics models

Growth, carrying capacity, predator-prey interaction, and ecological feedback examples.

Robotics & vehicle models

Kinematics, rigid-body dynamics, tire/ground interaction, and actuator dynamics.

Aerospace & pointing models

Satellite attitude, antenna azimuth, aircraft landing, and servomotor dynamics.

Thrust vector control

Uses gimbaled or vectored thrust and nested attitude-position loops in rockets and VTOL aircraft.

Operational-amplifier models

Use high-gain electronics and feedback interconnections to model analog circuits and controllers.

Atomic-force-microscope models

Model nanopositioning, piezo actuation, and tip-sample interaction for precision feedback.

Power-system models

Generator, grid-interconnection, and topology identification examples.

Precision motion models

Flexible structures, disk-drive servos, voice-coil actuators, runout, and amplifier saturation.

Linearization

Connects nonlinear first-principles models to linear design workflows.

Transfer functions

Connect physical equations to classical feedback design.

Block diagrams

Organize plant, controller, actuator, sensor, reference, disturbance, and noise paths.

Safety constraints

Define forbidden states, operating envelopes, and acceptable risk.