Glossary · Automation fundamentals, platforms and components
Automatic control
Also known as: Automatic operation
German: Automatische Steuerung
In industrial automation, automatic control is the operation of a process or machine by a control system without continuous human intervention, using programmed logic or control loops to act on measured or commanded values.
- Automation components
In one sentence
Automatic control means a control system runs a process or machine without continuous human intervention, using logic or control loops.
Example
In automatic mode, a palletizer builds complete layers from incoming cartons, and the operator only intervenes when a pallet is full or an alarm occurs.
How it applies
- Engineering: Automatic control is usually one of several operating modes, alongside manual, setup and maintenance modes. Mode selection defines which functions and safeguards are active.
- Operation: Operators supervise rather than execute each step; they react to alarms and change setpoints or recipes.
- Documentation: Instructions should state how to enter and leave automatic mode, which conditions must be met before starting, and what the machine does automatically, so that no movement comes as a surprise. See Operating mode.
Automatic control vs. automation
Automation is the broader discipline of using technology to perform tasks with reduced human effort. Automatic control is the running behavior of a specific system. The German term "Steuerung" can mean both open-loop control and control in general, so translations should check which is meant: Open-loop control acts without feedback, Closed-loop control corrects based on measured values.