The authors have been developing a hierarchical control system for the activated sludge process which consists of an upper level system controlling long-term seasonal variations, a control system of intermediate level aiming at optimization of the process and a control system of lower level controlling diurnal changes or hourly fluctuations. The control system using the multi-variable statistical model is one of the most appropriate control systems based on the modern control theory, for applying the lower level control of the activated sludge process. This paper introduces our efforts for developing the reliable data acquisition system, the control experiments applying the AR-model, one of the statistical models which were conducted at a pilot plant and present studies on the system identification and control at a field sewage treatment plant.
