A Nonlinear Model Predictive Control Framework as Free Software: Outlook and Progress Report

Model predictive control (MPC) has been a field with considerable research efforts and significant improvements in the algorithms. This has led to a fairly large number of successful industrial applications. However, many small and medium enterprises have not embraced MPC, even though their processes may potentially benefit from this control technology. We tackle one aspect of this issue with the development of a nonlinear model predictive control package NEWCON that will be released as free software. The work details the conceptual design, the control problem formulation and the implementation aspects of the code. A possible application is illustrated with an example of the level and reactor temperature control of a simulated CSTR. Finally, the article outlines future development directions of the NEWCON package.