A Review of Some Subtleties of Practical Relevance

This paper reviews some subtleties in time-delay systems of neutral type that are believed to be of particular relevance in practice. Both traditional formulation and the coupled differential-difference equation formulation are used. The discontinuity of the spectrum as a function of delays is discussed. Conditions to guarantee stability under small parameter variations are given. A number of subjects that have been discussed in the literature, often using different methods, are reviewed to illustrate some fundamental concepts. These include systems with small delays, the sensitivity of Smith predictor to small delay mismatch, and the discrete implementation of distributed-delay feedback control. The framework prsented in this paper makes it possible to provide simpler formulation and strengthen, generalize, or provide alternative interpretation of the existing results

Optimal Pole Assignment of Linear Systems by the Sylvester Matrix Equations

The problem of state feedback optimal pole assignment is to design a feedback gain such that the closed-loop system has desired eigenvalues and such that certain quadratic performance index is minimized. Optimal pole assignment controller can guarantee both good dynamic response and well robustness properties of the closed-loop system. With the help of a class of linear matrix equations, necessary and sufficient conditions for the existence of a solution to the optimal pole assignment problem are proposed in this paper. By properly choosing the free parameters in the parametric solutions to this class of linear matrix equations, complete solutions to the optimal pole assignment problem can be obtained. A numerical example is used to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach

STABILITY AND PERFORMANCE OF NETWORKED CONTROL SYSTEMS

Network control systems (NCSs), as one of the most active research areas, are arousing comprehensive concerns along with the rapid development of network. This dissertation mainly discusses the stability and performance of NCSs into the following two parts. In the first part, a new approach is proposed to reduce the data transmitted in networked control systems (NCSs) via model reduction method. Up to our best knowledge, we are the first to propose this new approach in the scientific and engineering society. The "unimportant" information of system states vector is truncated by balanced truncation method (BTM) before sending to the networked controller via network based on the balance property of the remote controlled plant controllability and observability. Then, the exponential stability condition of the truncated NCSs is derived via linear matrix inequality (LMI) forms. This method of data truncation can usually reduce the time delay and further improve the performance of the NCSs. In addition, all the above results are extended to the switched NCSs. The second part presents a new robust sliding mode control (SMC) method for general uncertain time-varying delay stochastic systems with structural uncertainties and the Brownian noise (Wiener process). The key features of the proposed method are to apply singular value decomposition (SVD) to all structural uncertainties, to introduce adjustable parameters for control design along with the SMC method, and new Lyapunov-type functional. Then, a less-conservative condition for robust stability and a new robust controller for the general uncertain stochastic systems are derived via linear matrix inequality (LMI) forms. The system states are able to reach the SMC switching surface as guaranteed in probability 1 by the proposed control rule. Furthermore, the novel Lyapunov-type functional for the uncertain stochastic systems is used to design a new robust control for the general case where the derivative of time-varying delay can be any bounded value (e.g., greater than one). It is theoretically proved that the conservatism of the proposed method is less than the previous methods. All theoretical proofs are presented in the dissertation. The simulations validate the correctness of the theoretical results and have better performance than the existing results

Prediction-Based Super Twisting Sliding Mode Load Frequency Control for Multi Area Interconnected Power Systems with State and Input Time Delays using Disturbance Observer

International audienceA shift in paradigm from dedicated to open communication channels in power systems have made them prone to constant and time varying delays. This paper tackles a novel load frequency control (LFC) problem in the presence of constant and time varying delays in state and control input under load disturbances. The presence of time delays can deteriorate the performance of the controller or even destabilize the system. The above problem is addressed through a prediction-based super twisting sliding mode control (ST-SMC) using a state and disturbance observer. The proposed design achieves finite time convergence of frequency and tie line power deviation. The said design is validated under ramp and random step disturbance, with nonlinearities like generation rate constraints and governor deadband, with an integration of renewable energy and also with IEEE 39 bus power system. The closed loop stability is proven thanks to candidate Lyapunov function and verified by simulations

Prediction-Based Control for Nonlinear Systems with Input Delay

This work has two primary objectives. First, it presents a state prediction strategy for a class of nonlinear Lipschitz systems subject to constant time delay in the input signal. As a result of a suitable change of variable, the state predictor asymptotically provides the value of the state τ units of time ahead. Second, it proposes a solution to the stabilization and trajectory tracking problems for the considered class of systems using predicted states. The predictor-controller convergence is proved by considering a complete Lyapunov functional. The proposed predictor-based controller strategy is evaluated using numerical simulations

Design and analysis of robust controllers for directional drilling tools

Directional drilling is a very important tool for the development of oil and gas deposits. Attitude control which enables directional drilling for the efficient placement of the directional drilling tools in petroleum producing zones is reviewed along with the various engineering requirements or constraints. This thesis explores a multivariable attitude governing plant model as formulated in Panchal et al. (2010) which is used for developing robust control techniques. An inherent input and measurement delay which accounts for the plant's dead-time is included in the design of the controllers. A Smith Predictor controller is developed for reducing the effect of this dead-time. The developed controllers are compared for performance and robustness using structured singular value analysis and also for their performance indicated by the transient response of the closed loop models. Results for the transient non-linear simulation of the proposed controllers are also presented. The results obtained indicate that the objectives are satisfactorily achieved

Pole Placement and Reduced-Order Modelling for Time-Delayed Systems Using Galerkin Approximations

The dynamics of time-delayed systems (TDS) are governed by delay differential equa- tions (DDEs), which are infinite dimensional and pose computational challenges. The Galerkin approximation method is one of several techniques to obtain the spectrum of DDEs for stability and stabilization studies. In the literature, Galerkin approximations for DDEs have primarily dealt with second-order TDS (second-order Galerkin method), and the for- mulations have resulted in spurious roots, i.e., roots that are not among the characteristic roots of the DDE. Although these spurious roots do not affect stability studies, they never- theless add to the complexity and computation time for control and reduced-order modelling studies of DDEs. A refined mathematical model, called the first-order Galerkin method, is proposed to avoid spurious roots, and the subtle differences between the two formulations (second-order and first-order Galerkin methods) are highlighted with examples. For embedding the boundary conditions in the first-order Galerkin method, a new pseudoinverse-based technique is developed. This method not only gives the exact location of the rightmost root but also, on average, has a higher number of converged roots when compared to the existing pseudospectral differencing method. The proposed method is combined with an optimization framework to develop a pole-placement technique for DDEs to design closed-loop feedback gains that stabilize TDS. A rotary inverted pendulum system apparatus with inherent sensing delays as well as deliberately introduced time delays is used to experimentally validate the Galerkin approximation-based optimization framework for the pole placement of DDEs. Optimization-based techniques cannot always place the rightmost root at the desired location; also, one has no control over the placement of the next set of rightmost roots. However, one has the precise location of the rightmost root. To overcome this, a pole- placement technique for second-order TDS is proposed, which combines the strengths of the method of receptances and an optimization-based strategy. When the method of receptances provides an unsatisfactory solution, particle swarm optimization is used to improve the location of the rightmost pole. The proposed approach is demonstrated with numerical studies and is validated experimentally using a 3D hovercraft apparatus. The Galerkin approximation method contains both converged and unconverged roots of the DDE. By using only the information about the converged roots and applying the eigenvalue decomposition, one obtains an r-dimensional reduced-order model (ROM) of the DDE. To analyze the dynamics of DDEs, we first choose an appropriate value for r; we then select the minimum value of the order of the Galerkin approximation method system at which at least r roots converge. By judiciously selecting r, solutions of the ROM and the original DDE are found to match closely. Finally, an r-dimensional ROM of a 3D hovercraft apparatus in the presence of delay is validated experimentally