the present invention is a system and method for the automatic control of a debarking system for use in a chip mill , paper mill , or the like . the present invention comprises one or more programmable logic controllers that receive input from ultrasonic sensors that measure the quantity of wood present at various locations within the system . based on this data , the plcs reference look - up tables that contain information on start , stop , speed up , and slow down times for various system components based on such criteria as wood variety and season . the control system optimizes the fiber yield from the debarking system while also reducing mechanical wear on components of the system by reducing the time at which components are run at high speed .