Transformation - Transfer Function State Space
Transformation - Transfer Function State Space
Contents State Space to Transfer Function Transfer Function to State Space Controllable Canonical Form Observable Canonical Form Other forms Two of the most powerful (and common) ways to represent systems are the transfer function form and the state space form. This page describes how to transform a transfer function to a state space representation, and vice versa. Converting from state space form to a transfer function is straightforward because the transfer function form is unique. Converting from transfer function to state space is more involved, largely because there are many state space forms to describe a system.
Now, take the Laplace Transform (with zero initial conditions since we are finding a transfer function):
We want to solve for the ratio of Y(s) to U(s), so we need so remove Q(s) from the output equation. We start by solving the state equation for Q(s)
The matrix (s) is called the state transition matrix. Now we put this into the output equation
Note that although there are many state space representations of a given system, all of those representations will result in the same transfer function (i.e., the transfer function of a system is unique; the state space representation is not).
First find (s I-A) and the =(s I-A)-1 (note: this calculation is not obvious. Details are here). Rules for inverting a 3x3 matrix are here.
To make this task easier, MatLab has a command (s s 2 t f ) for converting from state space to transfer function. > >%F i r s td e f i n es t a t es p a c es y s t e m > >A = [ 010 ;001 ;342 ] ; > >B = [ 0 ;0 ;1 ] ; > >C = [ 510 ] ; > >[ n , d ] = s s 2 t f ( A , B , C , D ) n= 0 d= 1 . 0 0 0 0 2 . 0 0 0 0 4 . 0 0 0 0 3 . 0 0 0 0 0 1 . 0 0 0 0 5 . 0 0 0 0
First find (s I-A) and the =(s I-A)-1 (note: this calculation is not obvious. Details are here).
and the characteristic equation (i.e., the denominator of the transfer function) is
For such systems (no derivatives of the input) we can choose as our n state variables the variable y and its first n-1 derivatives (in this case the first two derivatives)
Note: For an nth order system the matrices generalize in the obvious way (A has ones above the main diagonal and the differential equation constants for the last row, B is all zeros with b 0 in the bottom row, C is zero except for the leftmost element which is one, and D is zero)
For such systems (no derivatives of the input) we can choose as our n state variables the variable y and its first n-1 derivatives (in this case the first two derivatives)
Taking the derivatives we can develop our state space model (which is exactly the same as when we started from the differential equation)
Note: For an nth order system the matrices generalize in the obvious way (A has ones above the main diagonal and the coefficients of the denominator polynomial for the last row, B is all zeros with b 0 (the numerator coefficient) in the bottom row, C is zero except for the leftmost element which is one, and D is zero)
If we try this method on a slightly more complicated system, we find that it initially fails (though we can succeed with a little cleverness). Example: Differential Equation to State Space (harder)
Consider the differential equation with a single derivative on the right hand side.
The method has failed because there is a derivative of the input on the right hand, and that is not allowed in a state space model. Fortunately we can solve our problem by revising our choice of state variables.
The second and third equations are not correct, because is not one of the state variables. However we can make use of the fact:
In the third state variable equation we have successfully removed the derivative of the input from the right side of the third equation, and we can get rid of the term using the same substitution we used for the second state variable.
The process described in the previous example can be generalized to systems with higher order input derivatives but unfortunately gets increasingly difficult as the order of the derivative increases. When the order of derivatives is equal on both sides, the process becomes much more difficult (and the
variable "D" is no longer equal to zero). Clearly more straightforward techniques are necessary. Two are outlined below, one generates a state space method known as the "controllable canonical form" and the other generates the "observable canonical form (the meaning of these terms derives from Control Theory but are not important to us).
We start by multiplying by Z(s)/Z(s) and then solving for Y(s) and U(s) in terms of Z(s). We also convert back to a differential equation.
We can now choose z and its first two derivatives as our state variables
From these results we can easily form the state space model:
In this case, the order of the numerator of the transfer function was less than that of the denominator. If they are equal, the process is somewhat more complex. A result that works in all cases is given below; the details are here. For a general nth order transfer function:
We can convert this to a differential equation and solve for the highest order derivative of y:
Now we integrate twice (the reason for this will be apparent soon), and collect terms according to order of the integral:
Looking at the right hand side of the differential equation we note that y=q1 and we call the two integral terms q2:
so
This is our first state variable equation. Now let's examine q2 and its derivative:
Again we note that y=q1 and we call the integral terms q3:
so
This is our second state variable equation. Now let's examine q3 and its derivative:
This is our third, and last, state variable equation. Our state space model now becomes:
In this case, the order of the numerator of the transfer function was less than that of the denominator. If they are equal, the process is somewhat more complex. A result that works in all cases is given below; the details are here. For a general nth order transfer function:
Other forms
There are many other forms that are possible. For example MATLAB uses a variant of the controllability canonical form in its "s s d a t a " function.
References
Copy right 2005-2013 Erik Cheev er This page may be f reely used f or educational purposes. Comments? Questions? Suggestions? Corrections? Erik Cheev er Department of Engineering Swarthmore College