Decoupling of multiple stand interactions in looperless rolling control process

Control of hot metal rolling process plays an important role in assuring high product quality and safe process operation. However, looperless interstand tension control remains a hard-to-solve problem due to strong interactions of adjacent rolling stands. This paper proposes a novel decoupling strategy to address this problem. Incorporating the proposed method with fuzzy control theory, an intelligent multiple stand tension control system is realized. Results from a virtual rolling test demonstrate the effectiveness and applicability of the proposed decoupling strategy.