MPSoCs and Multicore Microcontrollers for Embedded PID Control: A Detailed Study

This paper presents different multiprocessor implementations of the proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller using two technologies: 1) field programmable gate array (FPGA)-based multiprocessor system-on-chip (MPSoC); and 2) multicore microcontrollers (MCUs). Techniques to implement a parallelized PID controller, a multi-PID controller, and a self-tuning PID controller are proposed. These techniques are verified using hardware (HW) in the loop (HIL) simulations. Then, the paper presents a detailed case study of an embedded real-time (RT) self-tuning PID controller for a 1-degree-of-freedom (1-DOF) aerodynamical system. This includes controller design, parameters tuning, and implementation using a multiprocessor system. Results proved the effectiveness of the proposed techniques to improve performance and functionality. It is shown that customizing HW and software (SW) within MPSoCs provides higher RT performance. Moreover, using multicore MCUs can reduce design time, implementation time, and cost, while keeping adequate performance. Therefore, it is possible to realize and implement complex RT embedded controllers that employ advanced control algorithms in rapid, effective, and cost-efficient fashion.