Setup calculation function of the process control system for tandem cold rolling mills not only determinates the dimension accuracy of finished strip materials directly, but also affects the control of surface quality of strip materials. In the present work, an attempt was made to develop a new setup calculation method for tandem cold rolling mills to maximize the throughput and improve the surface quality of strips. Based on the application platform for level-2 process control system, the modular design method was adopted, and then the setup calculation function was developed. And four functional modules consisting of preset preparation module (PPM), basic setup calculation module (BSCM), dynamic setup calculation module (DSCM), and adaptive calculation module (ACM) were developed. The preset data from PPM were used in equipment of level-1 process control system, and the purposes of BSCM was to achieve high quality of products, reduce off thickness deviation and achieve stable rolling at maximum possible rolling speed for raising productivity. In order to minimize off error of preset and actual data, DSCM was provided. Thanks to the design of ACM, accuracy of mathematical model can be effectively improved on line. Ultimately, the precise model on setup calculation method for cold tandem rolling of strip steels was established, and then it was put into practical production. Statistics analysis showed that the measured data was in excellent agreement with the model, and exactly, the relative deviations on rolling force and delivery thickness of strips were less than 3.67% and 0.42%, respectively. The new setup calculation method has high precision and good generalization capability.
