Practical Implementation Issues for Active Control of Large Flexible Structures

Abstract

Most active control strategies, whether designed in the discrete or continuous domain, will most likely be implemented using a digital control system. Therefore, it is important to study the effects of digital implementation on the desired control law. In this work, the effect of quantization due to the finite wordlength of microprocessors, analog-to-digital, and digital-to-analog converters, on the desired control law is investigated. Additionally, the practical effect of actuator dynamics on the stability and performance of the control law is addressed. Finally, an active control experiment is reported on which takes into account and demonstrates some of these practical considerations.