Thickness and Tension Control in Rolling Mills

This paper presents a novel approach for improving the performance of rolling mills, by designing an estimation-based control algorithm. Such algorithm satisfies both objectives including high quality and low production cost. This problem is solved by developing reduced order state observers. The proposed estimation-based control technique facilitates combining sensor-based and sensorless design methodologies. This technique is applicable to both hot rolling and cold rolling processes. A typical cold rolling process is adopted here to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed estimation method. Simulation results show that the desired performance can be achieved using the developed strategy.