Port Hamiltonian formulation of infinite dimensional systems I. Modeling

In this paper, some new results concerning the modeling of distributed parameter systems in port Hamiltonian form are presented. The classical finite dimensional port Hamiltonian formulation of a dynamical system is generalized in order to cope with the distributed parameter and multivariable case. The resulting class of infinite dimensional systems is quite general, thus allowing the description of several physical phenomena, such as heat conduction, piezoelectricity and elasticity. Furthermore, classical PDEs can be rewritten within this framework. The key point is the generalization of the notion of finite dimensional Dirac structure in order to deal with an infinite dimensional space of power variables

Multi-variable port Hamiltonian model of piezoelectric material

In this paper, the dynamics of a piezoelectric material is presented within the new framework of multi-variable distributed port Hamiltonian systems. This class of infinite dimensional system is quite general, thus allowing the description of several physical phenomena, such as heat conduction, elasticity, electromagnetism and, of course, piezoelectricity. The key point is the generalization of the notion of finite dimensional Dirac structure in order to deal with an infinite dimensional space of power variables. In this way, the dynamics of the system results from the interconnection of a proper set of elements, each of them characterized by a particular energetic behavior, while the interaction with the environment is described in terms of mechanical and electrical boundary ports

Bridging the gap between passivity and transparency

In this paper a structure will be given which in a remarkably simple way offers a solution to the implementation of different telemanipulation schemes for discrete time varying delays by preserving passivity and allowing the highest trans- parency possible. This is achieved by splitting the communication channel in two separate ones, one for the energy balance which will ensure passivity and one for the haptic information between master and slave and which will address transparency. The authors believe that this structure is the most general up to date which preserves passivity under discrete time varying delays allowing different control schemes to address transparency

Space Robotics: an Experimental Set-up based on RTAI-Linux

In space application, it is of great interest the development of autonomous or semi-autonomous robotic devices that can substitute the astronauts in routine operations in order to free them from repetitive tasks and reduce mission costs. In this work, an experimental setup based on a 6 degrees of freedom (dof) manipulator with a 3 dof gripper designed for a possible application within PaT, the Payload Tutor proposed by ASI (Italian Space Agency), is presented. This system consists of a robotic arm, a vision system, and a gripper. Since the gripper has to interact with free-floating and irregular objects, the vision subsystem provides all the information needed for grasping unknown objects in an optimal way

Robust Aeroelastic Control of Very Flexible Wings using Intrinsic Models

This paper explores the robust control of large exible wings when their dynamics are written in terms of intrinsic variables, that is, velocities and stress resultants. Assuming 2-D strip theory for the aerodynamics, the resulting nonlinear aeroelastic equations of motion are written in modal coordinates. It is seen that a system which experiences large displacements can nonetheless be accurately described by a system with only weak nonlinear couplings in this description of the wing dynamics. As result, a linear robust controller acting on a control surface is able to effectively provide gust load alleviation and flutter suppression even when the wing structure undergoes large deformations. This is numerically demonstrated on various representative test cases. © 2013 by Yinan Wang, Andrew Wynn and Rafael Palacios

Modeling and control of a flying robot for contact inspection

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Distributed port-Hamiltonian formulation of infinite dimensional systems

Abstract. The purpose of this paper is to show how the Timoshenko beam can be fruitfully treated within the framework of distributed port Hamiltonian systems (dpH systems), both for modeling and control purposes. In this manner, rather simple and elegant considerations can be drawn regarding both the modeling and control of this mechanical system. In particular, it is shown how control approaches already presented in the literature can be elegantly unified, and a new control methodology is presented and discussed

On the Synthesis of Discrete-time Energy-based Regulators for Port-Hamiltonian Systems

This paper aims at describing a synthesis procedure of discrete-time, energy-based regulators for continuous-time port-Hamiltonian systems. The methodology consists of three steps. The first twos deal with the definition of a discrete-time approximation of the plant to be successively employed in the development of the control law. Here, the focus is mainly on the last step, i.e. on how to interconnect digital controller and plant. The coupling is implemented via a zero-order hold and relies on the solution of an optimisation problem that determines the “best” and “minimal” correction to be applied to the nominal action to achieve the same performances obtained when the regulator is in closed-loop with the discrete-time model of the plant. This is the reference scenario used by the designer to develop and tune the control law. The procedure (time-discretisation, control design and coupling implementation) is illustrated in an example

Dirac structures on Hilbert spaces and boundary control of distributed port-Hamiltonian systems

Aim of this paper is to show how the Dirac structure properties can be exploited in the development of energy-based boundary control laws for distributed port-Hamiltonian systems. Usually, stabilization of non-zero equilibria has been achieved by looking at, or generating, a set of structural invariants, namely Casimir functions, in closed-loop. Since this approach fails when an infinite amount of energy is required at the equilibrium (dissipation obstacle), this paper illustrates a novel approach that enlarges the class of stabilizing controllers. The starting point is the parametrization of the dynamics provided by the image representation of the Dirac structure, that is able to show the effects of the boundary inputs on the state evolution. In this way, energy-balancing and control by state-modulated source methodologies are extended to the distributed parameter scenario, and a geometric interpretation of these control techniques is provided. The theoretical results are discussed with the help of a simple but illustrative example, i.e. a transmission line with an RLC load in both serial and parallel configurations. In the latter case, energy-balancing controllers are not able to stabilize non-zero equilibria because of the dissipation obstacle. The problem is solved thanks to a (boundary) state-modulated source