Abstract: During the rolling process of medium and heavy plates, various types of plane shape defects may occur, which severely affect product quality and yield, thereby constraining performance and production line efficiency. As a critical technical aspect for ensuring the dimensional quality of final products, planar shape control has long been a key focus in the field of steel rolling. The development of planar shape control technologies for medium and heavy plates are systematically reviewed, covering the evolution from fundamental theories and experimental studies to engineering applications, with concise analysis, comparison, and commentary. Furthermore, recent advances in intelligent equipment and data-driven control technologies are summarized, and future research directions are discussed in the context of the steel industry's ongoing shift toward intelligent manufacturing. The aim is to provide theoretical support and practical insights for the continued optimization and upgrading of planar shape control technologies.