Control System Stability

Presenter :Engineer Motion Marufu

E-mail: motionmarufu60@[Link]
WhatsApp: +263773587388
 Introduction
• A system is said to be stable if it does not exhibit large changes in its output for a
small change in its input, initial conditions or its system parameters. In a stable
system, the output is predictable and finite for a given input. The definition of
stability depends on the type of system. Generally, the stability of a system is
classified as stable, unstable and marginally stable.
• A linear time-invariant system is said to be stable if the output remains bounded
when the system is excited by a bounded input. This is called the Bounded-Input
Bounded-Output (BIBO) stability criterion. Further
 Concept of Stability
• Let us consider the following two practical examples to have a clear idea on the
stability of a system. Consider a ball that rests on different types of surfaces under
the influence of the gravitational force as shown in Fig below.
Stable System: A system is said to be stable if it maintains
its equilibrium position ( original position) when a small
disturbance is applied to it. As shown in Fig. (a), even if the
ball is disturbed, the equilibrium position will not change.
Hence, the system is called asymptotically
stable.
Unstable System: A system is said to be unstable if it attains
a new equilibrium position that does not resemble the original
Marginally Stable System: A system is said to be marginally equilibrium position when a small disturbance is applied to it.
stable if it attains a new equilibrium position that resembles the As shown in Fig. (b), even if the ball is slightly disturbed, it
original equilibrium position when a small Disturbance is will upset the equilibrium condition and the ball will roll
applied to it. As shown in Fig. (c), when an impulsive force is down from the hill and it will never return back to the
applied, the ball will move for a fixed distance and then stop due Equilibrium state. Hence, the system is called unstable.
to friction. Although the position is changed, the ball will come
to a new equilibrium position. Hence, the system is called
marginally or non-asymptotically stable.
 Concept of Stability
• Oscillatory System: As shown in Fig. (d), when we apply a disturbing force, the
ball will move in both the directions (oscillatory motion). Eventually, these
oscillations will cease due to the presence of friction and the ball will return back
to its stable equilibrium state.
 Concept of Stability
• In this section, we will learn stability analysis and stability analysis in complex
plane. Now the problem is why we need to investigate stability? The answer is
quite obvious, the issue of ensuring the stability of a closed-loop system is the
most important to control system design. An unstable feedback system is of no
practical value. Therefore, we may indicate that
• An LTI control system is in equilibrium, and it will departure from its equilibrium
when it is subjected to transient disturbance;
• An LTI control system is stable if the output eventually comes back to its
equilibrium state when the system is subjected to an initial condition;
• An LTI control system is critically stable if oscillations of the output continue
forever; and
• It is unstable if the output diverges without being bound from its equilibrium state
with the initial condition of the system.
 Introduction
• A system is bounded-input bounded-output (BIBO) stable, if every bounded
input results in a bounded output. The output of a stable system is kept within the
admissible boundaries, whereas the output of an unstable system can,
theoretically, increase to infinity.
• A linear time-invariant system is stable, if the poles of the closed-loop system are
in the left-half s-plane, that is, the poles have real negative parts. On the other
hand, if at least one pole is in the right-half s-plane, the system is unstable.
The response of an automatic control system is related to the roots of the
characteristic equation (poles) of the transfer function:
• If the poles are in the left-half s-plane, then the response of the system to various
disturbance signals is decreasing.
• If there are poles on the imaginary jω axis or in the right-half s-plane, then the
response of the system to a disturbance input is constant or increasing.
 System Stability
In a stable system, the response or output is predictable, finite and stable for a given
input (or for any changes in input or for any changes in system parameters). The
different definitions of stability are:
• A system is stable, if its output is bounded (finite) for any bounded (finite) input.
• A system is asymptotically stable, if in the absence of input, the output tends to
zero (or to the equilibrium state) irrespective of initial conditions.
• A system is stable if for a bounded disturbing input signal the output vanishes
ultimately as t approaches infinity.
• A system is unstable if for a bounded disturbing input signal the output is of
infinite amplitude or oscillatory.
• For a bounded input signal, if the output has constant amplitude oscillations, the
system may be stable or unstable under some limited constraints. Such a system is
said to be limitedly stable.
 System Stability
• If a system is stable for a variations of its parameters, the system is an absolutely
stable system.
• If a system output is stable for as limited range of variations of its parameters, the
system is called a conditionally stable system.
 Introduction
• If the characteristic equation of the system has simple roots on the imaginary jω
axis, and all of its other roots are in the left-half s-plane, then its steady-state
output is a bounded function. In this case, the system is called marginally
stable.

Output of a stable system Output of an unstable system

 Concept of Stability
• However, if all closed-loop poles lie to the left of the j axis, any transient
response eventually reaches equilibrium. This represents a stable system. Stability
is the most important problem in linear control systems. So, in this part, we will
figure out the following problems.
• What conditions will a system become unstable?
• If it is unstable, how stabilize the system?
• Why the system is stable if all closed-loop poles lie in the left-half s-plane?
• Whether a linear system is stable or unstable is a property of the system itself and
does not depend on the input or driving function of the system. The poles of the
input, or driving function, do not affect the property of stability of the system, but
they contribute only to solved readily by choosing no closed-loop poles in the
right-half s-plane, including the j axis.
 Concept of Stability
• Mathematically, closed-loop poles on the j axis will yield oscillations, the
amplitude of which is neither decaying nor growing with time. However, in
practical cases where noise is present, the amplitude of oscillations may increase
at a rate determined by the noise power level. Therefore, a control system should
not have closed-loop poles on the j axis.
• Note that the mere fact that all closed-loop poles lie in the left-half s-plane does
not guarantee satisfactory transient response characteristics. If dominant complex-
conjugate closed-loop poles lie close to the j axis, the transient response may
exhibit excessive oscillations or may be very slow.
 Concept of Stability
• Therefore, to guarantee fast, yet well-damped, transient response characteristics, it
is necessary that the closed-loop poles of the system lie in a particular region in
the complex plane, such as the region bounded by the shaded area that we can see
in Figure.
 Introduction

Poles of a stable system Poles of an unstable system

 Definitions
For analysis and design purposes, stability of a system can be classified as:
• Absolute stability – This is the condition whether the system is stable or unstable.
It is a YES or a NO answer.
• Relative stability – This is a quantitative measure of how stable a system is. It is
the degree of stability of a system.
Terms used
A LTI system is said to be stable if the following conditions are met:
• When then input is excited by a bounded input, output is bounded and
controllable.
• In the absence of input, output must tend to zero irrespective of initial conditions
Unstable system – A LTI system is said to be unstable if,
• For a bounded input it produces unbounded output
• In the absence of input, output is not zero. It shows output with no input.
 Definition of terms
Absolute system – An absolute system is stable for all parameters of the system.
Conditionally stable – A conditionally stable system is stable for a certain
bounded range system parameters.

Critically or Marginally stable system – A LTI system is critically or marginally

stable if for a bounded input, its output oscillates with constant frequency and
amplitude. Such oscillations are called un-damped oscillations or sustained
oscillations. So stability or instability is a property of the system itself i.e. closed
loop poles of the system. It does not depend on input or driving function. Input
poles do not affect stability of the system but only steady state output.
 Pole Position and system response
Special case – if there are repeated roots located purely on imaginary axis, system is
said to be unstable as shown in response graphs ahead.
Conditionally stable system – If system stability is dependent on system parameters
such said to be a conditionally stable system. The s-plane can be divided into three
distinct zeros from stability point of view.
𝒋𝝎 𝑨𝒙𝒊𝒔
 System Stability
Every system has to pass through a transient stage for a small period before
reaching steady state. Naturally the question comes into play, “Will the system
reach its steady state after passing through transients?” To get the answer of this
question, study of stability is of utmost importance. If the system is stable, its
performance and improvement can be taken into account for further consideration.
A linear time invariant system is said to be stable if it satisfies the following
conditions:
• Even after excitation by a bounded input, output must be bounded.
• In the absence of input, output must be zero irrespective of initial conditions.
 Effect of location of poles on stability
Location of poles has a direct effect on stability. The entire s-plane is taken into
account and it is divided as follows:
(a) Left half plane (LHP)
(b) 𝑗𝜔-axis
(c) Right half plane (RHP)
Let us consider the following cases:
LHP poles
(i) On real axis and simple,
(ii) On real axis and multiple,
(iii) Complex conjugates and simple.
The system is stable for all of the above three conditions.
 Effect of location of poles on stability
Location of poles has a direct effect on stability. The entire s-plane is taken into
account and it is divided as follows:
(a)Left half plane (LHP) for single and multiple pole at s = -a. The system is stable
as shown below.

Decaying
impulse

g 𝑡 = 𝑒 −𝑎𝑡

1
G(s)= 𝑠+𝑎
Roots in s-plane and its impulse response
 Effect of location of poles on stability
Pole on 𝒋𝝎-axis In this case, if the pole has zero real part
and at ±𝑗b and is not repeated, the system is called
stable.
Simple Pole on 𝑗𝜔-axis at –a ± jb Simple Pole on 𝑗𝜔-axis at ± jb
1 1 1 1
𝐺 𝑠 = + − 𝑎+𝑗𝑏 𝑡 − 𝑎+𝑗𝑏 𝑡
𝐺 𝑠 = +
𝑠 + 𝑗𝑏 𝑠 − 𝑗𝑏
𝑔 𝑡 = 𝑒 −𝑗𝑏𝑡 + 𝑒 𝑗𝑏𝑡
𝑠 + 𝑎 + 𝑗𝑏 𝑠 + 𝑎 − 𝑗𝑏 𝑔 𝑡 =𝑒 +𝑒

Single pair of Impulse response is

roots on oscillatory
Decaying imaginary axis
impulse

This system is marginally stable

This system is stable Roots in s-plane and its impulse response
 Effect of location of poles on stability
Pole on 𝒋𝝎-axis
Single Pole at origin Double pole at origin
𝐾 g 𝑡 =𝐾 1 g(𝑡) = 𝑡
𝐺 𝑠 = 𝐺 𝑠 = 2
𝑠 𝑠
Impulse response linearly increases
with time

Impulse response is
constant

This system is
This system is marginally stable marginally stable
 Effect of location of poles on stability
Pole on 𝒋𝝎-axis
(i) Double pair poles at ±𝑗𝑏.
1 1
𝐺 𝑠 =
𝑠 + 𝑗𝑏 2
+
𝑠 − 𝑗𝑏 2 𝑔 𝑡 = 𝑡𝑒 −𝑗𝑏𝑡 + 𝑡𝑒 𝑗𝑏𝑡

Impulse response linearly increases

sinusoidally i.e. amplitude of oscillations
linearly increases with time

Systems is unstable as shown by the impulse response

 Effect of location of poles on stability
Poles on RHS of s-plane
The system is unstable for all of the below conditions as shown in response.

Impulse response increases

exponentially
Roots/poles on positive real
axis

g 𝑡 = 𝑒 𝑎𝑡

1
𝐺 𝑠 =
𝑠−𝑎
Roots in s-plane and its impulse response
 Effect of location of poles on stability
Poles on RHS of s-plane
• (i) complex conjugate poles at 𝑎 ± 𝑗𝑏.
1 1 g(t)=𝑒 − −𝑎+𝑗𝑏 𝑡 + 𝑒 − −𝑎−𝑗𝑏 𝑡
+
𝑠 − 𝑎 + 𝑗𝑏 𝑠 − 𝑎 − 𝑗𝑏

System is unstable as shown by the response

Roots in s-plane and its impulse response
 Effect of location of poles on stability
• Summary
• The following three points may be started regarding the stability of the system
depending on the location of the roots/poles of the characteristic equation.
1. If all the roots of the characteristic equation has negative real parts, the system is
stable.
2. If any root of the characteristic equation has a positive real part or if there is
repeated root on the imaginary axis, the system is stable.
3. If the condition in (1) is satisfied except for the presence of one or more non
repeated roots on the imaginary axis, the system is limitedly stable or marginally
stable.
 Effect of location of poles on stability
From the definition of stability, the impulse response must tend to zero as time approaches
infinity.
Therefore, the following conclusions can be drawn:
(i) For all the poles located in the left half of s-plane, the impulse response tends to zero
and hence the system is stable.
(ii) For poles on the 𝑗𝜔 axis and simple, the system is marginally stable or limitedly stable.
(iii) For all poles located in the right half of s-plane or if there is repeated root, the impulse
response does not tend to zero and it increase with time. Therefore, the output becomes
unbounded. Hence the system is unstable.
Therefore, if the roots of the characteristic equation
(i) have a negative real part, system is stable.
(ii) have a zero real part and the pole is not repeated, the system is marginally or limitedly
stable.
(iii) have a positive real part, the system is unstable.
 Effect of location of poles on stability
Determine whether the following systems are stable, marginally stable, and
unstable.
(a) -2, -5; -The system is stable since both roots have negative real parts.
(b) -3, 2; -The system is unstable since one root has a positive real part.
(c) -2, 0; -The system is marginally stable because the roots are non-positive.
(d) -2 +j, -2 -j; -Since the negative real parts are only counted, the system is
stable.
(e) -2, 2, -j,j; -The system is unstable because the positive root is 2 here.
(f) -2 +j4, -2 -j4, -2; The system is stable.
(g) -2 +j2, -2 -j2,- 2j, 2j; The system is marginally stable.
 Effect of location of poles on stability
(h) an integrator; The characteristic equation of an integrator s = 0. Since there
is no root with a positive real part, an integrator is marginally stable.
𝐹 𝑠
(i) a step input; Since a step function gives , the system is marginally
𝑠
stable.
(j) a bounded input that produces an unbounded output; The system is
unstable.
(k) x(t)= cos 𝜔𝑡 The system is unstable since there is no decay.
(1) x{t) = 𝑒 −𝑡 sin 4𝑡 The system is stable because there is decay exponentially.
 Stability Concept
A LTI systems is said to be stable if the following conditions are met:
Bounded input produces bounded output
In the absence of input the output tends towards zero irrespective of initial
conditions i.e. if a system is subjected to unbounded input and produces a
unbounded response, nothing can be said about its stability. If it is subjected to
bounded input and produces an unbounded response than it is said to be unstable.
The stability of a linear closed loop system can be determined from the locations of
closed loop poles in the s-plane.
𝐶(𝑠) 10
For example. =𝐺 𝑠 = . Let R(s) = 1/s for a step input.
𝑅(𝑠) (𝑠+3)(𝑠+5)

10 𝐴 𝐵 𝐶
𝐶 𝑠 = = + +
𝑠(𝑠 + 3)(𝑠 + 5) 𝑠 𝑠 + 3 𝑠 + 5
 Stability Concept
Using Partial fractions
5
2/3 3 1 0.66 1.66 1
𝐶 𝑠 = − − = − +
𝑠 𝑠+3 𝑠+5 𝑠 𝑠+3 𝑠+5
Taking inverse Laplace transform
0.66 − 1.66𝑒 −3𝑡 − 𝑒 −5𝑡
As 𝒕 → ∞ both exponential functions approach zero and the output will be a
steady output (𝑪𝒔𝒔 ). Such systems are called absolutely stable systems.
 Stability Concept
𝐶(𝑠) 10
Now let =𝐺 𝑠 = .
Let R(s) = 1/s for a step input.
𝑅(𝑠) (𝑠−2)(𝑠+4)
10 𝐴 𝐵 𝐶
𝐶 𝑠 = = + +
𝑠(𝑠 − 2)(𝑠 + 4) 𝑠 𝑠 − 2 𝑠 + 4

1.22 0.833 0.416

+ +
𝑠 𝑠−2 𝑠+4

−1.22 + 0.833𝑒 +𝟑 + 0.416𝑒 −5

Due to pole located in the right half, there is one exponential term with a
positive indice in the transient output. The system is unstable.
 Stability Concept
It determines the poles of a characteristic equation with respect to the left and the
right half of the s-plane without solving the equation. The transfer function of any
closed-loop system is given by
𝐶(𝑠) 𝑎0 𝑠𝑚 +𝑎1 𝑠 𝑚−1 +⋯𝑎𝑚
•𝐺 𝑠 = = where a and b are constants. To find the poles of
𝑅(𝑠) 𝑏0 𝑠 𝑛 +𝑏1 𝑠𝑛−1 +⋯𝑎𝑛
this closed-loop system, let us take
• 𝑏0 𝑠 𝑛 + 𝑏1 𝑠 𝑛−1 + ⋯ 𝑎𝑛 = 0
The roots of this characteristic equation represent the closed-loop poles. The
stability of the system depends on these poles. The necessary, but not sufficient,
conditions for the system having no roots in the right half of s-plane are given
below:
(i) All the coefficients of the polynomial must have the same sign.
(ii) All powers of s must be present in descending order.
Please take note that the above conditions are not sufficient.
Stability Concept
 Routh-Hurwitz criterion
• It is an analytical procedure for determining whether all the roots of a polynomial
have a negative real part or not. The first step in analyzing the stability of a system
is to examine its characteristic equation. The necessary condition for stability is
that all the coefficients of a polynomial be positive. If some of the coefficients are
zero or negative, it can be concluded that the system is not stable.
• When all the coefficients are positive, the system is not necessarily stable since
some of the roots may lie on the right half of the s-plane or on the imaginary axis.
In order for all the roots to have negative real parts, it is necessary but not
sufficient that all coefficients of the characteristic equation be positive. If all
coefficients of the characteristic equation are positive, then the system may be
stable and one should proceed further to examine sufficient conditions of stability.
• A. Hurwitz and E. J Routh published independently methods of investigating
sufficient conditions of stability of a system. The Hurwitz criterion is in terms of
determinants and Routh criterion is in terms of array formation.
 Hurwitz criterion
All the sub-determinants must be positive for a stable system. The
disadvantages of Hurwitz’s criterion are as follows:
(i) It is very complicated and time consuming for solving higher-order
systems.
(ii) This method is unable to find the exact number of poles located in the
right half of s-plane.
(iii) It is very tough to predict marginal stability.
Due to the above disadvantages, the method suggested by Routh known
as Routh’s method is used and it is the one we will study. It is also known
as the Routh-Hurwitz method.
 Routh Criterion
Routh’s stability criterion is based on ordering the coefficients of the characteristic
equation into a schedule called the Routh array.
Routh’s array is also known as Routh’s stability criterion. the necessary and
sufficient condition for system stability is that all the terms in the first column of
Routh’s array must have same sign. If there are any sign changes then the system is
unstable and the number of sign changes in the elements of first column of Routh’s
array is equal to the number of the roots of the characteristic equation in the right
half of the s-plane.
 Routh's Stability Criterion
Routh’s stability criterion states that the system is stable iff all the elements in the
first column have the same algebraic sign.
If all the elements are not of the same sign then the number of sign changes of the
elements in the first column equals the number of roots of the characteristic
equation in the right of the s-plane ( or equals to the number of roots with positive
real parts).
The criteria implies that for a system to be stable there should not be any changes in
sign in the entries in the first column of the table. This is a both necessary and
sufficient condition for ensuring stability. Since, the signs of the entries in the first
column of the table influence the decision about stability, the exact values of the
terms are not important.
 Routh's Stability Criterion
In this criterion, the coefficients are arranged in an array which is known as
Routh’s array. For the characteristic 𝑎0 𝑠 𝑛 + 𝑎1 𝑠 𝑛−1 + 𝑎2 𝑠 𝑛−2 … +𝑎𝑛 = 0 the
method of forming the array is given below.
𝑠 𝑛 𝑎𝑜 𝑎2 𝑎4 𝑎6 … .
𝑠 𝑛−1 𝑎1 𝑎3 𝑎5 𝑎7 … .
𝑠 𝑛−2 𝑏1 𝑏2 𝑏3 𝑏4 … .
𝑠 𝑛−3 𝑐1 𝑐2 𝑐3 ⋯
⋮ ⋮
𝑎0
𝑠 0 𝑛−2 𝑎1 𝑎2 −𝑎0 𝑎3 𝑎1 𝑎4 −𝑎0 𝑎5 𝑎1 𝑎6 −𝑎0 𝑎7
For 𝑠 : 𝑏1 = , 𝑏2 = , 𝑏3 =
𝑎1 𝑎1 𝑎1
The coefficients 𝑏1 , 𝑏2 , 𝑏3 , etc., are evaluated, in terms of the elements from the
first two rows, as indicated below:
 Routh’s Criterion
• Routh’s tabulation

• where the terms 𝑏1 , 𝑏2 , 𝑐1 , 𝑐2 , 𝑑1 , 𝑒1 are computed as above. According to Routh’s

stability criterion, a system is stable if the terms of the first column of Routh’s
tabulation (i.e., 𝑎0 , 𝑎1 , 𝑏1 , 𝑏2 , 𝑐1 , 𝑐2 , 𝑑1 , 𝑒1 ) are of the same sign.
 Routh’s Criterion – Special cases
Special Cases
a. If a term of the first column is zero, while all the other terms of the row are
nonzero or do not exist, then the zero term is replaced by a very small number,
which is of the same sign as the previous terms of the first column. The procedure
continues as normal. Alternatively, the characteristic polynomial can be multiplied
by s + a, where a > 0 and −a is not a root of the characteristic equation.
b. If all terms of a row in Routh’s array are zero, then the array is completed by
replacing the zero terms by the terms of the differentiated auxiliary equation of the
previous row.
c. If two (or more) rows have zero terms, then the system is unstable and the
characteristic polynomial has two real poles with multiplicity 2.
 Routh's Stability Criterion
This process is continued until 𝑠 𝑛 is obtained, which is equal to 𝑎𝑛 . The stability of
the system can be predicted from this array as discussed below.
• All the terms in the first column of Routh’s array should have same sign, and there
should not be any change of sign. This is a necessary and sufficient condition for
the system to be stable. Any change of sign in the first column of Routh’s array
indicates
(i) the system is unstable and
(ii) the number of changes of sign gives the number of roots lying in the right half
of s-plane.
 Routh's Stability Criterion
The necessary and sufficient condition that all roots of Equation (𝑏0 𝑠 𝑛 + 𝑏1 𝑠 𝑛−1 +
⋯ 𝑎𝑛 = 0) lie in the left-half s plane is that all the coefficients of Equation (𝑏0 𝑠 𝑛 +
𝑏1 𝑠 𝑛−1 + ⋯ 𝑎𝑛 = 0) be positive and all terms in the first column of the array are
positive. While preparing the table, we may encounter four different cases which
require some modifications of the procedure for computing the elements of the
array. The distinct cases are:
(1) None of elements in the first column is zero. This is normal Routh array.
(2) a zero in the first column, but some or other elements nonzero;
(3) All zero elements or a row of zeros.
 Routh's Stability Criterion
• Case I - Normal Routh Array.
• In this case, there is no difficult in forming the Routh array. If there is no change
in the first column of Routh array, then all the roots lie on the left half of the s-
plane and the system is stable.
• If there is a sign change in the first column, of the Routh array, then the system is
unstable and the number of roots lying on the right half of the s-plane is equal to
sign changes. The remaining roots lie on the LHS of the s-plane.
• Case II - A Row of Zeros
• An all zero row indicates the existence of an even polynomial as a factor of the
given characteristic equation. In an even polynomial the exponents of s are even
integers or zero only. The coefficients of the even polynomial will always be the
elements of the row directly above the row of zeros in the array. Two methods
used to solve this case are discussed in slides ahead.
 Routh's Stability Criterion
• Case III – First element of a row is zero
• If a zero is encountered as first element of a row then all the elements of the next
row will be infinite. To overcome this problem, replace the first element with a
small positive integer, 𝜖. And then continue the process of completing the Routh
table. Now, find the number of sign changes in the first column of the Routh table
by substituting 𝜖 tends to zero. Note: if all the elements of a row are zeros, the
solution is attempted by considering the polynomial as case II polynomial. Even if
there is a single element zero it is considered as a row of zeros.
 Stability Problems using Routh array method
Determine the characteristic equation of the following systems
12
(i)𝐺 𝑠 = and 𝐻 𝑠 = 0.5
𝑠(𝑠2 +4𝑠+2)
Solution:
Characteristic equation is 1 + 𝐺 𝑠 𝐻 𝑠 = 0
12 3 + 4𝑠 2 + 6 = 0
1+ x 0.5 = 0 𝑜𝑟𝑠
𝑠(𝑠 2 + 4𝑠 + 2)
7
(ii)𝐺 𝑠 = ,𝐻 𝑠 = 𝑠
(𝑠+1)(𝑠+2)
7
Solution: 1 + 𝑥 𝑠 = 0 𝑜𝑟 𝑠 2 + 10𝑠 + 2 =0
(𝑠+1)(𝑠+2)
2 1
(iii) 𝐺 𝑠 = 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐻 𝑠 =
𝑠(𝑠+2) 𝑠
2 1
Solution: 1 + 𝑥 = 0 𝑜𝑟 𝑠 3 + 2𝑠 + 2 = 0
𝑠(𝑠+2) 𝑠
 Stability Problems using Routh array method
Examine the stability of 𝑠 3 + 5𝑠 2 + 10𝑠 + 3 = 0 using Routh’s method.

𝑠3 1 10
𝑠2 5 3
𝑠1 9.4 0
𝑠0 3
⋮ ⋮
𝑠0 𝑎0
In the first column there is no change of sign. Therefore, the system is stable.
𝑛−2 5∗10−1∗3 5∗0−1∗0 9.4∗3−5∗0
For 𝑠 : 𝑏1 = = 9.4, 𝑏2 = = 0, 𝑐1 = =3
5 5 9.4
 Stability Problems using Routh array method
Examine the stability of 𝑠 3 + 2𝑠 2 + 3𝑠 + 10 = 0
Solution

𝑠3 1 3
𝑠2 2 10
𝑠 −2 0 2∗3−1∗10 2∗0−1∗0 −2∗10−2∗0
𝑏1 = = −2, 𝑏2 = = 0, 𝑐1 = =
𝑠0 3 0 2 2 −2
⋮ ⋮ 10
𝑠0 𝑎0
10.
There are two changes of sign in the first column (from 2 to -2 and from -2 to3).
Hence the system is unstable.
 Stability Problems using Routh array method
The characteristic equations of two systems are given below:
(i) 𝑠 4 + 6𝑠 3 + 21𝑠 2 + 36𝑠 + 20 = 0 and (ii) 𝑠 5 + 6𝑠 4 + 3𝑠 3 + 2𝑠 2 + 𝑠 + 1 = 0
Solution

𝑠4 1 21 20
𝑠3 6 36 0
𝑠2 15 20 0 6 ∗ 21 − 1 ∗ 36 6 ∗ 20 − 0
𝑏1 = = 15, 𝑏2 = = 20,
𝑠1 28 0 0 6 6
𝑠0 20 0 0
. .
15∗36−120 400−0
𝑐1 = = 28, 𝑑1 = = 20.
15 20
All the coefficients of F (s) 𝑠 4 +
6𝑠 3 + 21𝑠 2 + +36𝑠 + 20 = 0 are positive and no
coefficient is missing. The system is stable.
 Stability Problems using Routh array method
(ii) 𝑠 5 + 6𝑠 4 + 3𝑠 3 + 2𝑠 2 + 𝑠 + 1 = 0

𝑠5 1 3 1
𝑠4 6 2 1
𝑠3 2.67 0.83 0 18 − 2 6−1
𝑏1 = = 2.67, 𝑏2 = = 0.83,
𝑠2 0.135 1 0 6 6
𝑠1 −18.95 0 0
𝑠0 1 0 0
2.67∗2−6∗0.83 1∗0.83−0
𝑐1 = = 0.135,𝑐2 = =1
2.67 0.83
0.135∗0.83−2.67∗1 −18.95∗1−0
𝑑1 = = −18.95, 𝑓1 = =1
0.135 −18.95
There are two changes of sign in the first column (From 0.135 to -18.95 to 1 hence
the system is unstable.
 Routh’s stability criterion and its application
Check the system represented by the following characteristic equation for absolute
stability
• 𝑠 3 + 5𝑠 2 + 25𝑠 + 10 = 0
The Routh’s array is
3 5 x25 − 10
𝑠 1 25 𝑏1 = = 23
5
𝑠2 5 10
1 23 x10 − 5 x 0
𝑠 23 0 𝑐1 =
23
= 10
𝑠0 10 0
𝑐2 = 0
All the elements in the first column are
positive. There is no root in the right half
of the s-plane. The system is therefore
absolutely stable.
 Stability Problems using Routh array method
Examine the stability of 𝑠 5 + 2𝑠 4 + 4𝑠 3 + 8𝑠 2 + 3𝑠 + 1 =0 using Routh’s criteria.
Solution
𝑠5 1 4 3
𝑠4 2 8 1
𝑠 3 0 2.5 0
𝑠 2 ∞ ⋯ ⋯ ← Routh’s array failed
𝑠1
𝑠0
𝑐1 = 0
𝑐2 = 2.5
𝑐3 = 0
𝑑1 = ∞
To remove the above difficulty, the following two methods can be used and one is
going to be discussed in the next slide.
 Stability Problems using Routh array method
Put s = 1/Z and the polynomial becomes
5 4 3 2 1 2 4 8 3
• 𝑠 + 2𝑠 + 4𝑠 + 8𝑠 + 3𝑠 + 1 =0 or + + + + + 1 = 0 or
𝑍5 𝑍4 𝑍3 𝑍2 𝑍
• 𝑍 5 + 3𝑍 4 + 8𝑍 3 + 4𝑍 2 + 2𝑍 + 1 =0
Routh’s array becomes

𝑍5 1 8 2
𝑍4 3 4 1
𝑍3 6.67 1.67 0
𝑍2 3.25 1 0
𝑍1 −0. 382 0 0
𝑍0 1 0 0
There are two changes of sign. Hence the system is unstable.
 Stability Problems using Routh array method
OR Multiply the original equation by a factor (s+a) where ‘a’ is any positive real number.
The simplest value of ‘a’ is ‘1’.
• (𝑠 + 1)(𝑠 5 +2𝑠 4 + 4𝑠 3 + 8𝑠 2 + 3𝑠 + 1) =0
• 𝑠 6 + 𝑠 5 + 2𝑠 5 + 𝑠 4 + 4𝑠 4 + 4𝑠 3 + 8𝑠 3 + 8𝑠 2 + 3𝑠 2 + 1 = 0
• 𝑠 6 + 3𝑠 5 + 5𝑠 4 + 12𝑠 3 + 11𝑠 2 + 1 = 0

𝑠6 1 5 11
𝑠5 3 12 1
𝑠4 1 10.67 0
𝑐1 =
15−12
= 1, 𝑐2 =
33−1
= 10.67, 𝑑1 =
12−32.01
= −20
𝑠 2 −20.01 1 0 3 3 3
𝑠1 10.67 0 0 There are two changes of sign. Hence
𝑠0 1 0 0 −213.51−1
the system is unstable.
𝑒1 = = 10.67
−20.−1
 Stability Problems using Routh array method
Examine the stability of 𝑠 5 + 2𝑠 4 + 2𝑠 3 + 4𝑠 2 + 4𝑠 + 8 = 0 using Routh’s
method.
Solution

𝑠5 1 2 4
𝑠4 2 4 8
𝑠3 0 0 0 ← Routh’s array failed.
𝑠2
𝑠1
𝑠0
To eliminate the above difficulty, form an equation by using the coefficients of the
array which is just above the row of zeros. The equation is known as auxiliary
equation.
 Stability Problems using Routh array method
𝑠5 1 2 4
𝑠4 2 4 8
𝑠3 8 8 0
𝐴 𝑠 = 2𝑠 4 + 4𝑠 2 + 8,
𝑑𝐴(𝑠)
= 8𝑠 3 + 8𝑠
𝑠2 2 8 0 𝑑𝑠
𝑠1 −24 0 0
𝑠0 8 0 0
There are two changes of sign. The system is unstable.
Examine the stability of the system having characteristic equation 𝒔𝟓 + 𝒔𝟒 +
𝟑𝒔𝟑 + 𝟑𝒔𝟐 + 𝟒𝒔 + 𝟖 = 𝟎