Adaptive global stabilization of chained-form systems with multiple disturbance and strong nonlinear drifts

This article investigates the stabilization of chained-form nonholonomic systems with strong drifts, multidisturbances, and unknown constant parameters. The disturbances include the matched disturbance with bounded variation and the unknown time-varying unmatched disturbance. A nonlinear disturbance observer is skillfully constructed to evaluate the matched disturbance and a disturbance estimation is used in the virtual controls to compensate the unmatched disturbance. By using a new input-to-state scaling scheme, the original nonholonomic system is transformed into a strict feedback form. Combining back-stepping technique with disturbance observer-based control (DOBC), a composite DOBC and global adaptive stabilization controller is proposed. A switching strategy based on control input magnitude instead of time is proposed to avoid uncontrollability. By using Lyapunov tools, all the states in the system are proved to be uniformly ultimate bounded. Simulations demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed strategies.     

Disturbance rejection of battery/ultracapacitor hybrid energy sources

This paper contributes an active control strategy to reject disturbances in hybrid energy source systems applied in hybrid electric vehicles. The disturbances include persistent disturbances introduced by engine torque ripples compensation, and transient disturbances caused by transient load power demands. The disturbance rejection is achieved via singular perturbation theory. The original system is a Port-Controlled Hamiltonian (PCH) system, and the controller is designed based on interconnection and damping assignment. Experimental results verify the effectiveness of the disturbance rejection control.     

Finite alphabet control of logistic networks with discrete uncertainty

We consider logistic networks in which the control and disturbance inputs take values in finite sets. We derive a necessary and sufficient condition for the existence of robustly control invariant (hyperbox) sets. We show that a stronger version of this condition is sufficient to guarantee robust global attractivity, and we construct a counterexample demonstrating that it is not necessary. Being constructive, our proofs of sufficiency allow us to extract the corresponding robust control laws and to establish the invariance of certain sets. Finally, we highlight parallels between our results and existing results in the literature, and we conclude our study with two simple illustrative examples.     

Closed-Form Solutions for the Transient and Steady-State Temperature of a Lumped Mass Coupled to Linear and Radiant Boundaries

Exact closed-form solutions describing the transient and steady-state temperature of a lumped mass, linearly coupled to a fixed-temperature boundary and radiatively coupled to a second fixed-temperature boundary, with a constant impressed heat load, are derived. The results are verified by evaluation of limiting cases and comparison with commercial finite-difference heat transfer software.     

A robust adaptive fuzzy variable structure tracking control for the wheeled mobile robot: Simulation and experimental results

In this paper an adaptive fuzzy variable structure control (kinematic control) integrated with a proportional plus derivative control (dynamic control) is proposed as a robust solution to the trajectory tracking control problem for a differential wheeled mobile robot. The variable structure controller, based on the sliding mode theory, is a well known, proven control method, fit to deal with uncertainties and disturbances (e.g., structural and parameter uncertainties, external disturbances and operating limitations). To minimize the problems found in practical implementations of the classical variable structure controllers, an adaptive fuzzy logic controller replaces the discontinuous portion of the control signals (avoiding the chattering), causing the loss of invariance, but still ensuring the robustness to uncertainties and disturbances without having any a priori knowledge of their boundaries. Moreover, the adaptive fuzzy logic controller is a feasible tool to approximate any real continuous nonlinear system to arbitrary accuracy, and has a simple structure by using triangular membership functions, a low number of rules that must be evaluated, resulting in a lower computational load for execution, making it feasible for real time implementation. Stability analysis and the convergence of tracking errors as well as the adaptation laws are guaranteed with basis on the Lyapunov theory. Simulation and experimental results are explored to show the verification and validation of the proposed control strategy.     

An optimal filter based MPC for systems with arbitrary disturbances

In this study, a linear model predictive control (MPC) approach with optimal filters is proposed for handling unmeasured disturbances with arbitrary statistics. Two types of optimal filters are introduced into the framework of MPC to relax the assumption of integrated white noise model in existing approaches. The introduced filters are globally optimal for linear systems with unmeasured disturbances that have unknown statistics. This enables the proposed MPC to better handle disturbances without access to disturbance statistics. As a result, the effort required for disturbance modeling can be alleviated. The proposed MPC can achieve offset-free control in the presence of asymptotically constant unmeasured disturbances. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed approach can provide an improved disturbance õrejection performance over conventional approaches when applied to the control of systems with unmeasured disturbances that have arbitrary statistics.     

Modified reduced order observer based linear active disturbance rejection control for TITO systems

This paper proposes an observer based control approach for two input and two output (TITO) plant affected by the lumped disturbance which includes the undesirable effect of cross couplings, parametric uncertainties, and external disturbances. A modified reduced order extended state observer (ESO) based active disturbance rejection control (ADRC) is designed to estimate the lumped disturbance actively as an extended state and compensate its effect by adding it to the control. The decoupled mechanism has been used to determine the controller parameters, while the proposed control technique is applied to the TITO coupled plant without using decoupler to show its efficacy. Simulation results show that the proposed design is efficiently able to nullify the interactions within the loops in the multivariable process with better transient performance as compared to the existing proportional-integral-derivative (PID) control methods. An experimental application of two tanks multivariable level control system is investigated to present the validity of proposed scheme.     

An investigation of energy loss mechanisms in water-jet assisted underwater laser cutting process using an analytical model

The water-jet assisted underwater laser cutting processes has relatively low overall efficiency compared to gas assisted laser cutting process due to high convective loss in water-jet from the hot melt layer and scattering loss of laser radiation by the water vapour formed at the laser–workpiece–water interaction region. However, the individual contribution of different losses and their dependency on process parameters are not fully investigated. Therefore, a lumped parameter analytical model for this cutting process has been formulated considering various laser–material–water interaction phenomena, different loss mechanisms and shear force provided by the water-jet, and has been used to predict various output parameters including the maximum cutting speed, cut front temperature, cut kerf and the loss of laser power through different mechanisms as functions of laser power and water-jet speed. The predictions of cutting speed, kerf-width and cut front temperature were validated with the experimental results. The modeling revealed that the scattering in water vapour is the dominant loss mechanism, causing ~40–50% of laser power loss. This also predicted that the percentage losses are lower for higher laser powers and lower water-jet speeds. In order to minimize the deleterious effect of vapour, dynamics of its formation due to laser heating and its removal by water-jet was experimentally studied. And, the cutting was done with modulated power laser beam of different pulse on- and off-times to determine the pulse on-time sufficiently short to disallow growth of vapour layer, still cutting be effected and the off-time enough long for water-jet to remove the vapour layer from the interaction zone before next pulse arrives. Compared to CW laser beam the modulated laser beam of same average power yielded higher process efficiency.     

Experimental and theoretical investigation on microwave melting of metals

Experiments were conducted for microwave heating and melting of lead, tin, aluminium and copper with the aid of susceptors and the detailed results were presented for various microwave power levels and sample loading. Aluminium and copper samples were heated in presence of inert gas to minimize oxidation. Compared to conventional melting, microwave melting was twice as fast and more energy efficient. Lumped parameter model of the heating process showed that the conversion of microwave to thermal energy was enhanced at higher temperatures, justifying this a favourable process for metal melting applications.     

行波扰动对天波雷达慢速目标检测影响研究

利用电离层行波扰动(Traveling Ionospheric Disturbances,TIDs)模型,仿真分析了不同尺度TIDs引起的超视距雷达(Over the Horizon Radar,OTHR)地海杂波频谱频移、展宽以及对舰船目标检测的影响.结果表明:小尺度TIDs引起的附加多普勒频移幅度较小,但随时间变化较快,S形曲线扭曲较为严重,对OTHR影响主要表现为多普勒频移;中尺度和大尺度TIDs引起的附加多普勒频移相对于小尺度TIDs的有所增加,但随时间变化减缓,S形曲线扭曲程度减小,除引起地海杂波多普勒频移外,同时引起杂波频谱展宽,影响舰船目标检测.同时,还给出了不同尺度TIDs引起的海杂波频移、展宽抑制方法,经仿真验证,上述算法有效.