1 research outputs found
Model-based controller design for a lift-and-drop railway track switch actuator
Track switches are essential in order to enable
railway vehicles to change routes however they are also the
largest single cause of failure on the railway network. A new
generation of switching concepts are emerging from projects
like In2Rail, REPOINT and S-Code that promise to improve
rail network performance through the use of new mechanisms,
monitoring and control systems. This paper focusses on modelling
and control of a lab-demonstrator from the REPOINT project.
Unlike conventional track switch machines, this actuator needs
closed loop feedback control. First, a detailed simulation model
of the actuator is developed and validated against experimental
results. Two model-based control designs are then developed and
tested: a classical cascaded P/PI controller and a modern state
feedback controller. The two controllers are compared and it
is found that, whilst there are some performance differences,
both meet the requirements for use in a redundantly actuated
REPOINT switch