So, while some dread that a tentacled AI is threatening to supplant the PID loop, the real question is: How can AI bolster existing process control methods?
This where the AI digital sidekick comes into the picture. Essentially, this is advanced software that scours process data, spots trends and suggests actions. Think of it as a tireless apprentice, quietly sifting through temperature spikes, pH dips and feed-rate anomalies.
Instead of hijacking the process, it nudges you with suggestions like: “Hey, maybe dial down that integral gain.”
This is better than handing over full control to AI. That’s why my recommendation is to not rip out the proven PID loop but augment it with AI.
I say this because regulators still trust those three letters — P, I and D — as symbols of simplicity and safety. A tuning agent can crunch numbers in the background and offer adjustment recommendations, but the PID loop remains in charge.
These AI agents aren’t limited to tuning, either. They can manage ISA 18.2 alarms, audit logs, release-by-exception batch reporting, energy-use correlations and trace matrices from FRS (functional requirements specification) and FAT (factory acceptance test) documents.
Of course, in FDA-regulated territory, auditors will demand thorough records, version control and ironclad testing. And AI can help here, too, by creating documentation that organizes and fills in the reporting gaps so well that inspectors may never guess it took way less time.
Ultimately, we’re not torching the old temple. We’re giving the PID faithful a stable, validated PID loop fortified by AI.
Bill Mueller is the founder and senior engineer of Lucid Automation and Security, an integrator member of the Control System Integrators Association (CSIA). For more information about Lucid Automation and Security, visit its profile on the Industrial Automation Exchange.
