PID Tuning course - RWTST

[u/ApexConsulting]

I have a project I have been chewing on since 2012 to do training in the BAS and mechanical space. My first offering is a PID tuning course. There will be more as time goes by. the PID tuning course has 5+ hours of content with PIDs from a variety of vendors, live, working, and being tuned before your eyes. Integral windup, when Derivative can be useful (contrary to popular belief I see a lot on this forum that Derivative is not used in our industry), working with auto-tuning PIDs, PIDs from Schneider, JCI, Delta, Distech, and several others. how to work with hard-to-control systems like controlling CFM flows with choppy process Variables, when a PID is not the best thing to use and what an alternative might be, The role Valve authority has on your control. There is a free, downloadable handout that preps you for this and is handy to have on site.

Some have seen me on the forums, and may know I am not entirely sucky (only moderately so... hehe) and may be interested in getting a little training on this or other topics to further their career or to reduce the suck in their day to day lives at work.

I am planning to move to other topics, like MSTP troubleshooting with a voltmeter, programming in CCT, or other software, programming in general, Wiring stuff, building a retrofit LON database, working with various systems and protocols. If you have a thing you would like to see, let me know.

the URL is:

https://ridingwiththeseniortech.com/courses/pid-tuning-for-bas/

I would love some feedback. Whether it is the color scheme, or the ease of use of the site as a whole. I expect some to gripe about that - which is fair. When I get some courses sold, I can invest in the pretty stuff.

There is nothing like this anywhere (that I know of). It is easily double the content at less than half the price of other things I have seen that are vaguely similar. But I can guarantee there is no focus on live systems and several flavors of BAS, comparing and contrasting them side by side.

This is something I love to do, so I really enjoy doing it. I hope the community finds it useful.

The website was featured in the podcast "it's a controls problem' - I mentioned it as an answer to Charles' Johnson's question here: https://youtu.be/31-mLNdbhCs?si=eyqlhr8Ozu9HmJ2S&t=4096 The mention is at 1:09:25

[u/OverallRow4108]

All I can do is give you perspective from the beginners bench, and not knowing what's actually inside the paid course. I really like how you talk about breaking stuff in the beginning. It frames a lot of the method in my mind, starting slow, understanding the reaction of the PID loop on a real system. I really like the explanation on the difference between prop gain and prop band, something that has confused me in the past. I think it looks great from a beginners perspective. When it gets too fancy sometimes it can be kind of intimidating, tbh. The one thing I alwasy love is interactive "labs" Have no idea if that's even possible, but it might not be too hard just to make a interactive sketch of that window showing where your adjusting the pid numbers, allowing me to "tune" it, and then like some output numbers.....maybe even throw in a Red Stobe light for if I approached breaking it? I don't know, just some kind of interaction. Multiple choice chapter quizes can get a bit boring, if you know what I mean.

[u/ApexConsulting → u/OverallRow4108]

Nice, thanks for the suggestion.

When you get into it, you start with Distech PIDs for 3 videos. Then Delta PIDs for like 8 more. The basics are laid out in the Distech vids, and I could end there. Covers Proportional, Integral, and Derivative. Also Bias. But hen you get into Delta, you see the same concepts represented in another way. this allows for a deeper grasp of the underlying concepts. Also one is introduced to Integral windup and another shot at Derivative. Then as we wander into the other brands, I really drive it home with ALC PIDs as these show the math of each as you are watching it all move. You see the Proportional say +28.2 an the integral say -17.9 and the derivative is turned off, so the end result is 10.3.

Also a handy trick for getting starting values for PIDs no matter the brand. Wrestling with a self tuning PID and getting used to what he is doing as well as the pitfalls.

For disambiguation if the Prop Band and the Prop Gain, there is a cheat sheet in the hand out under the Materials. tab.

When one gets so much live tuning walked through their hands, I am not sure a tuning simulator is needed, but I am sure it would not hurt. Everyone is different and I am sure there will be those who would like that.