What is "setpoint"

n. The command signal or value which is fed into a controller to establish the target or desired position or state of the controlled device or process.

In cybernetics and control theory, a setpoint (also set point, set-point) is the desired or target value for an essential variable of a system, often used to describe a standard configuration or norm for the system. Departure of a variable from its setpoint is one basis for error-controlled regulation, that is, the use of feedback to return the system to its norm, as in homeostasis. For example, a boiler might have a temperature setpoint, which is the temperature the boiler control system aims to maintain.