Unmanned Underwater Vehicles (UUVs) are widely used in commercial, scientific, and military missions for various purposes. What makes this technology challenging is the increasing mission duration and unknown environment. It is necessary to embed fault-tolerant control paradigms into UUVs to increase the reliability of the vehicles and enable them to execute and finalize complex missions. Specifically, fault-tolerant control (FTC) comprises fault detection, identification, and control reconfiguration for fault compensation. Literature review shows that there have been no systematic methods for fault-tolerant control of UUVs in earlier investigations. This study presents a hierarchical methodology of fault detection, identification and compensation (HFDIC) that integrates these functions systematically in different levels. The method uses adaptive finite-impulse-response (FIR) modeling and analysis in its first level to detect failure occurrences. Specifically, it incorporates a FIR filter for on-line adaptive modeling, and a least-mean-squares (LMS) algorithm to minimize the output error between the monitored system and the filter in the modeling process. By analyzing the resulting adaptive filter coefficients, we extract the information on the fault occurrence. The HFDIC also includes a two-stage design of parallel Kalman filters in levels two and three for fault identification using the multiple-model adaptive estimation (MMAE). The algorithm activates latter levels only when the failure is detected, and can return back to the monitoring loop in case of false failures. On the basis of MMAE, we use multiple sliding-mode controllers and reconfigure the control law with a probability-weighted average of all the elemental control signals, in order to compensate for the fault. We validate the HFDIC on the steering and diving subsystems of Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) UUVs for various simulated actuator and/or sensor failures, and test the hierarchical fault detection and identification (HFDI) with realistic data from at-sea experiment of the Florida Atlantic University (FAU) Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs). For both occasions, we model actuator and sensor failures as additive parameter changes in the observation matrix and the output equation, respectively. Simulation results demonstrate the ability of the HFDIC to detect failures in real time, identify failures accurately with a low computational overhead, and compensate actuator and sensor failures with control reconfiguration. In particular, verification of HFDI with FAU data confirms the performance of the fault detection and identification methodology, and provides important information on the vehicle performance. / Ph. D.

<p>Rad je posvećen robusnom upravljanju sistemima čiji je linearni regulator i/ili dinamika necelog reda, kao i upravljačkim problemima gde regulator necelog reda u sebi poseduje i linearnu i nelinearnu dinamiku, a koji upravlja procesima čija dinamika može i linearna i nelinearna.</p> / <p>The thesys is dedicated to robust control systems problems with linear<br />controllers and/or process dynamics of noninteger order, as well as control<br />issues with combination of linear and nonlinear controllers of noninteger<br />order that control either linear or nonlinear systems.</p>

Sistemas de levitação eletromagnética são de interesse quando se necessita de tecnologia envolvendo redução de atrito, atuação sem contato físico, máquinas rotativas e trens de alta velocidade. Devido à presença de não linearidades em sua dinâmica, pesquisadores têm dado atenção ao desenvolvimento de controladores mais sofisticados, com o objetivo de melhorar o desempenho desses sistemas. Controladores lineares apresentam limitações na faixa de operação da variável controlada e, geralmente apresentam baixa robustez quando aplicados em sistemas não lineares. O objetivo deste trabalho é desenvolver controladores não lineares com diferentes estruturas e analisá-los quando aplicados em um protótipo do sistema físico. Inicialmente, o sistema é modelado matematicamente através da abordagem fenomenológica. Em seguida, os parâmetros do modelo são identificados através de dados obtidos experimentalmente. Conhecendo bem a dinâmica do sistema através do modelo, são projetados três controladores de diferentes estruturas utilizando simulações computacionais. O primeiro é o PID clássico, controle linear amplamente utilizado em processos industriais. O segundo controlador é um PID com topologia não linear, denominado NPID. Este visa reduzir as limitações encontradas no PID linear, através de funções não lineares em seus termos. O último e mais complexo se trata do controle por modos deslizantes (SMC). Também com estrutura não linear, o SMC possui como característica intrínseca a robustez a variações da planta. Ao final, são realizadas simulações e os controladores avaliados são implementados de maneira digital em um hardware de controle e aplicados em uma planta piloto de levitação eletromagnética. Os resultados de desempenho obtidos permitem avaliar qual topologia de controlador melhor se enquadra diante dessa aplicação. / Electromagnetic levitation systems are of interest when it is necessary the use of technology involving reduction of friction, acting without physical contact, rotating machinery and high speed trains. Due to the nonlinear dynamics, researchers have paid attention to the development of more sophisticated controllers, in order to improve the performance of these systems. Linear controllers have limitations in the operating range of the controlled variable and generally have low robustness when applied to linear systems. The objective of this work is to develop nonlinear controllers with different structures and analyze them, when applied to a prototype of the physical system. Initially the system is modeled mathematically through the phenomenological approach. Then the model parameters are identified by experimentally obtained data. Knowing the dynamic of the system through the model, three different controllers are designed using computer simulations. The first is the classic PID, a linear control widely used in industrial processes. The second controller is a PID with nonlinear topology, called NPID. This controller is intended to reduce the limitations found in the linear PID through non linear functions on its terms. The last and most complex is the sliding mode control (SMC). Also a nonlinear structure, the SMC has the intrinsic characteristic of robustness to variations of the plant. In the end, the simulations are performed and the evaluated controllers are implemented in digital form in a hardware control and applied in a pilot plant of an electromagnetic levitation system. With the performance results it is possible to verify which controller topology best fits this application.

Le contrôle des écoulements est un domaine en forte croissance visant à modifier un écoulement à l’aide d’actionneurs et d’algorithmes de contrôle. Un axe important du contrôle des écoulements est le contrôle des décollements car le décollement de la couche limite provoque des augmentations de traînée et donc des pertes énergétiques et des coûts en carburant. Cette thèse vise à développer des algorithmes de contrôles pour le recollement des écoulements à l’aide de jets pulsés. La première partie de cette thèse expose une technique d’identification de modèle basée sur des données expérimentales. Les modèles sont déduits de considérations physiques et de l’Automatique. Ils offrent une bonne correspondance aux données tout en restant simple et en contenant peu de coefficients. La seconde partie de cette thèse utilise ces modèles pour élaborer deux algorithmes de contrôle : le premier est un contrôle optimal en boucle ouverte et le second un contrôle robuste en boucle fermée. Ces algorithmes ont été implémentés sur diverses maquettes expérimentales (LML, ONERA, LAMIH) et leurs propriétés a été testée expérimentalement. Les tests ont été réalisés en utilisant un Arduino Uno pour les mesures et le calcul du contrôle, ce qui montre que la méthode développée est simple à appliquer et requiert peu de puissance de calcul / Flow control is a strongly growing field aiming at modifying fluid flows using actuators and control algorithms. An important part of flow control is the control of flow separation as boundary layer separation increases drag and therefore energy losses and fuel consumption. This thesis focuses on developing control algorithms for flow reattachment using pulsed jets actuators. The first part of this work develops a model identification technique based on experimental data. The models are derived from physical and control theory considerations. They provide a good fit to the data while remaining simple and using few coefficients. The second part of this work uses this models in order to design two different control algorithms : the first one is an optimal feedforward control while the second one is a robust feedback control. The control algorithms have been applied on several experimental setups (LML, ONERA, LAMIH) and their properties have been experimentally tested. The tests were conducted using a simple Arduino Uno for the measurements and computation of the control, showing that the developed method is easy to apply and requires very few computational resources

L’objectif des travaux entrepris au cours de cette thèse concerne le développement d’un système haptique de téléopération contrôlé à l’aide d’actionneurs électropneumatiques. Pour réaliser le contrôle du débit de ce type de modulateur, deux solutions technologiques sont possibles : soit des servovalves soit des électrovannes. La première solution est utilisée pour contrôler précisément des systèmes de hautes performances, mais l’apparition d’électrovannes rapides compactes à faible coût offre la possibilité de les utiliser à la place des servovalves. Même si cela entraîne des défis dans la réalisation de la commande, à cause de l’augmentation des non-linéarités intrinsèques de l’actionneur pneumatique lorsqu’il est piloté par les électrovannes au lieu des servovalves. Le premier objectif a consisté à démontrer la possibilité de réaliser des interfaces maître-esclave à performance acceptable à l’aide d’électrovanne, afin de produire des systèmes à faible coût. La méthode la plus courante pour commander des électrovannes consiste à utiliser un signal modulé en largeur d’impulsion. Afin de contrôler de manière plus optimale les électrovannes, une nouvelle stratégie de la commande basée sur l’algorithme hybride a été développée. Cette commande a été implémentée et testée sur un système de maître-esclave à un degré de liberté développé au cours de ces travaux de recherche. Les résultats ont démontré de meilleures performances dans le cas de la commande hybride en termes de dynamique de pression, des performances de suivi en force/position. Afin de disposer des informations de transparence et de stabilité, la commande par mode glissant a été choisie. Une comparaison de la transparence a été réalisée parmi trois architectures pour un système de téléopération. Pour améliorer les performances dynamiques du système, une commande à cinq-mode a été développée. Le second point de recherche entrepris est passé par l’utilisation de servovalves dans un système de téléopération, permettant ainsi de réaliser une comparaison entre les deux technologies. Dans le cas d’une architecture de téléopération, les données expérimentales pour les deux types d’organes de commandes, ont donné des résultats satisfaisants en termes de suivi de force et de position pour le maître et l’esclave. Dans le cas de système de téléopération bilatérale, le capteur de force est souvent supprimé dans le but de réduire les coûts ainsi que le poids et le volume du système global. Les travaux se sont ainsi intéressés à la possibilité d’utiliser des observateurs, à la place de capteurs de force pour déterminer les forces d’interactions entre les interfaces et leurs environnements. Les données expérimentales montrent ainsi qu’il est possible d’obtenir des bonnes performances de transparence en utilisant un simple observateur de Nicosia. Finalement ces différents résultats démontrent le potentiel des actionneurs électropneumatiques pour la réalisation le système de téléopération. / The aim of this thesis is to investigate the development and control of electro-pneumatic actuators in a haptic teleoperation system. For controlling the mass flow rate of such actuators, two types of valve technology are sudied, i.e. solenoid (on/off) valve and proportional servovalve. The servovalves have found widespread applications in which high accuracy of force/position control are needed. They are however typically expensive due to the requirements of high-precision manufacturing. Therefore, the low-cost solenoid valves can be an alternative to the servovalves for achieving acceptable-performance pneumatic control. Generally, the highly nonlinear of the pneumatic actuator is heightened when it uses on/off solenoid valves instead of servovalves. In this case, precise control is challenging due to the discrete-input nature of the system. Our first objective is to demonstrate that it is possible to design an acceptable performance teleoperation system using master-slave robots that have pneumatic actuators equipped with only inexpensive on/off solenoid valves. To control efficiently the switching valves, several control approaches have been proposed, namely pulse width modulation (PWM), hybrid algorithm, and sliding mode control. A hybrid control theory, which includes more switching control modes, than PWM, allows to reduce the chattering problem and improve the energy consumption of the valves. Another strategy (i.e. a sliding mode control), which does not depend on the pneumatic model, is proposed. This control stratgy allows to perform not only the transparent analysis but also the stability analysis. In order to improve the dynamic performance and reduce the chattering problem in solenoid valve actuated pneumatic teleoperation systems, a five-mode sliding control scheme has been used, which can be considered as an extension of the three-mode sliding controller. Our study demonstrates that by increasing the number of possible control actions for the valves, we can reduce the valves’ switching activities, hence improving the valve’s life times at no cost to teleoperation transparency. The second objective of the thesis involves in implementing the proportional servovalves on the pneumatic teleoperation system. A comparison related to the teleoperation performance between an on/off valve and a servovalve is carried out. In experiments, it is observed that with the bilateral teleoperation architecture employing solenoid valves or servovalves, satisfactory force and position tracking between the master and the slave is obtained. In bilateral teleoperation control, force sensors are often omitted to save cost and to lessen weight and volume. Therefore, another aspect of our work consists in using observers for an estimation of operator and environment forces. Experimental results show that acceptable teleoperation transparency based on a simple Nicosia observer and a tangent linear control approach can be achieved.

L'utilisation des convertisseurs de puissance pour des applications de la vie quotidienne devient de plus en plus importante. Les applications technologiques actuelles demandent simultanément un haut niveau de précision et de performance, ainsi les convertisseurs DC-DC ont un rôle très important dans les systèmes nécessitant la conversion et l’adaptation du niveau d'énergie. Nous nous intéressons dans le cadre des travaux de cette thèse à une analyse des approches de modélisation et de synthèse de loi de commande permettant d’assurer la stabilité et un certain niveau de performances dans l’ensemble du domaine de fonctionnement défini par un cahier des charges tout en prenant en compte la problématique de leur application dans un environnement industriel. L'objectif de nos travaux de recherche est donc de proposer des lois de commandes dont la synthèse est fondée sur une approche formalisé {modélisation + commande} en vue d’obtenir des lois de commande adaptées au point de fonctionnement. Les principes exploités sont fondés sur la commande et l’observation par modes glissants d’une part, et sur la théorie de passivité pour la synthèse des lois de commande, complétées par un couple {observateur d’état + estimateur de charge} dont la synthèse est fondée sur l’exploitation des principes d'immersion et invariance, d’autre part. Le souci de la validation expérimentale et de l’implantation des structures de commande avec du matériel disponible industriellement a été en permanence un fil conducteur. Pour démontrer l’efficacité des méthodes proposées, leur application expérimentale a été effectuée sur un convertisseur de type SEPIC. Ce convertisseur présente plusieurs avantages par rapport à autres convertisseurs. Cependant, il reste peu exploité, en dépit de ces avantages, en raison des difficultés pour obtenir des lois commande performantes permettant la stabilisation de sa tension de sortie dans tout l’ensemble du domaine de fonctionnement. / The use of power converters for real life applications is continuously increasing. Technological requirements include high precision levels and very good performances at the same time, where DC-DC converters have always played an important role in energy conversion-based systems. Our interest, throughout this thesis, is to analyze modeling and control law synthesis approaches in order to provide efficient control laws that are stable within the operating range, in response to certain specifications and also taking into account the problem of being industrially applicable. The aim of our research is hence to propose control law synthesis based on formalized {modeling + control} approaches, and adaptable to the operating point change. The exploited principles deal with Sliding Mode Observation and Control on one hand, and with the Passivity theory for control law synthesis coupled with the Immersion and Invariance principle for synthesizing {observers + load estimators} on the other. Also, the ease of implementing and validating the control law structures with common hardware available in the industry has always been a main issue throughout our study. In the view of illustrating the efficacy of the proposed methods, their experimental validation has been carried out on the SEPIC. This type of converter has many advantages compared to other converters. However, despite its advantages, it is still not well-exploited due to the difficulty in obtaining control laws capable of stabilizing its output voltage within a wide operating range.

Made available in DSpace on 2017-07-10T17:11:49Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Antonio_Chiella.pdf: 1495489 bytes, checksum: c662fb0b19b070474b00c5dcbb37ba11 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-02-27 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / In recent years, there has been a growth in the interest of industry and the scientific community for autonomous platforms, among these so-called AUVs (Autonomous Underwater Vehicle). Part of this interest is due to technological progress, with improved electronics and the reduction of its cost. Another part is due to application of this equipment in a variety of tasks such as inspection and maintenance of underwater structures in marine environment (oil and gas platforms) and recently inspection of hydroelectric plants. These robots allow the removal the operator of the region conducting task, reducing the risks in carrying it. In an attempt to make these fully autonomous platforms, reducing the efforts of the operator, challenges related to its control position emerge. In this work, the AUVs positioning control problem is addressed. The kinematic and dynamic models for the 6 degrees of freedom of these robots, as well as the modeling of the actuators and the external disturbances are presented. Characteristics of the mathematical model are used in the controller design, titled CMDG (Global Sliding Mode Control). The proposed controller is based on the sliding mode control, and its sliding surface was modified so as to delete the so called reaching phase. Numerical simulations show the good performance of the proposed controller when subjected to disturbances such as current, non-zero buoyancy and initial position errors. / Nos últimos anos, houve um crescimento no interesse da indústria e da comunidade científica por plataformas autônomas, entre essas os chamados AUVs (do inglês, Autonomous Underwater Vehicle). Parte deste interesse se deve ao avanço tecnológico, com a melhoria dos equipamentos eletrônicos e a diminuição de seu custo. Outra parte se deve a aplicação destes equipamentos em tarefas variadas, como inspeção e manutenção de estruturas subaquáticas em ambiente marinho (plataformas de óleo e gás) e recentemente inspeção de usinas hidrelétricas. Estes robôs permitem o afastamento do operador da região de realização da tarefa, reduzindo os riscos na execução da mesma. Na tentativa de deixar estas plataformas totalmente autônomas, diminuindo os esforços do operador, desafios relacionados ao seu controle de posição emergem. Neste trabalho, o problema do controle de posicionamento de AUVs é abordado. O modelo cinemático e dinâmico para os 6 graus de liberdade destes robôs, bem como a modelagem dos atuadores e das perturbações externas são apresentados. Características do modelo matemático são utilizadas no projeto do controlador, intitulado de CMDG (Controle por Modos Deslizantes Global). O controlador proposto, é baseado no controle por modos deslizantes, sendo sua superfície de deslizamento modificada, de forma a se eliminar a chamada fase de alcance. Simulações numéricas, mostram o bom desempenho do controlador proposto quando submetido a perturbações como correnteza, flutuabilidade não nula e erros de posição inicial.

Many problems in tracking control have been identified over the years, such as the availability of systems states, the presence of noise and system uncertainties, and speed of response, just to name a few. This thesis is concerned with developing novel integrated control and estimation algorithms to overcome some of these problems in order to achieve an efficient tracking performance. Since there are some significant advantages associated with Sliding Mode Control (SMC) or Variable Structure Control (VSC), (fast regulation rate and robustness to uncertainties), this research reviews and extends new filtering concepts for state estimation, referred to as the Variable Structure Filter (VSF)and Smooth Variable Structure Filter (SVSF). These are based on the philosophy of Sliding Mode Control.<p>The VSF filter is designed to estimate some of the states of a plant when noise and uncertainties are presented. This is accomplished by refining an estimate of the states in an iterative fashion using two filter gains, one based on a noiseless system with no uncertainties and the second gain which reflects these uncertainties. The VSF is combined seamlessly with the Sliding Mode Controller to produce an integrated controller called a Sliding Mode Controller and Filter (SMCF). This new controller is shown to be a robust and effective integrated control strategy for linear systems. For nonlinear systems, a novel integrated control strategy called the Smooth Sliding Mode Controller and Filter (SSMCF), fuses the SMC and SVSF in a particular form to address nonlinearities. The gain term in the SVSF is redefined to form a new algorithm called the SVSF with revised gain in order to obtain a better estimation performance. Its performance is compared to that of the Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) when applied to a particular nonlinear plant.<p>The SMCF and SSMCF are applied to the experimental prototype of a precision positioning hydraulic system called an ElectroHydraulic Actuator (EHA) system. The EHA system is known to display nonlinear characteristics but can approximate linear behavior under certain operating conditions, making it ideal to test the robustness of the proposed controllers.<p>The main conclusion drawn in this research was that the SMCF and SSMCF as developed and implemented, do exhibit robust and high performance state estimation and trajectory tracking control given modeling uncertainties and noise. The controllers were applied to a prototype EHA which demonstrated the use of the controllers in a real world application. It was also concluded that the application of the concepts of VSC for the controller can alleviate a challenging mechanical problem caused by a slip-stick characteristic in friction. Another conclusion is that the revised form of the SVSF could obtain robust and fast state estimation for nonlinear systems.<p>The original contributions of the research include: i) proposing the SMCF and SSMCF, ii) applying the Sliding Mode Controller to suppress cross-over oscillations caused by the slip-stick characteristics in friction which often occur in mechanical systems, iii) the first application of the SVSF for state estimation and iv) a comparative study of the SVSF and Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) to the EHA demonstrating the superiority of the SVSF for state estimation performance under both steady-state and transient conditions for the application considered.<p>The dissertation is written in a paper format unlike the traditional Ph.D thesis manuscript. The content of the thesis discourse is based on five manuscripts which are appended at the end of the thesis. Fundamental principles and concepts associated with SMC, VSF, SVSF and the fused controllers are introduced. For each paper, the objectives, approaches, typical results, conclusions and major contributions are presented. Major conclusions are summarized and original contributions reiterated.

En esta Tesis ha sido analizado el control de la màquina sincrónica de rotor bobinado actuando en isla. Para esta configuración, la velocidad mecànica determina la frecuencia, y la tensión de rotor se utiliza para fijar la amplitud de la tensión de estator. Debido a que la constante de tiempo eléctrica es mucho más ràpida comparada con la constante de tiempo mecánica, la velocidad mecánica fue considerada constante y externamente regulada y la investigación se enfocó en la regulación de la amplitud de la tensión de estator.Cuatro diferentes controladores basados en técnicas de modos deslizantes fueron diseñados en el marco de referencia dq. Las leyes de control obtenidas regulan la amplitud de la tensión de estator independientemte del valor de la carga. Adicionalmente, sólo las medidas de tensión y posición del rotor (para calcular la transformada dq) son necesarias. La estabilidad de los puntos de equilibrio obtenidos fueron probados al menos utilizando anàlisis de pequeña señal.Se realizó la validación por simulación y experimental de cada controlador en diferentes escenarios. Los resultados obtenidos validan los diseños y muestran las principales ventajas y desventajas de el sistema en lazo cerrado.El capítulo 2 cubre los problemas de modelado de la màquina sincrónica de rotor bobinado. Partiendo de las ecuaciones trifásicas generales, y utilizando la transformada de Park, se encontraron el modelo en dq del generador sincrónico de rotor bobinado (WRSG) en isla, alimentando tanto carga resistiva como inductiva. Los puntos de equilibrio del sistema obtenido fueron analizados y calculados, luego se definió el objetivo de control. Finalmente, se obtuvieron modelos lineales aproximados y sus respectivas funciones de transferencia.Los controladores PI son los más usados en la industria porque ofrecen buen desempeño y son sencillos de implementar. En el capítulo 3, se obtuvieron las reglas de sintonización para el controlador PI, y se analizaron estos resultados con el objetivo de proponer nuevos controladores que mejoraran el desempeño de la clásica aproximación PI.El esquema de control en modos deslizantes para la WRSG conectada a una carga resistiva fue diseñado en el capítulo 4. Éste, también incluye un completo análisis de estabilidad del sistema en lazo cerrado. El capítulo 5 presenta dos diseños basados en modos deslizantes para regular la amplitud de la tensión de estator para el WRSG actuando en isla. Ambos diseños usan la componente d de la tensión de estator en la función de conmutación. El primer caso es un control anidado, donde un lazo externo PI es añadido para proveer la referencia de la componente d de la tensión. En la segunda aproximación un término integral es añadido a la superficie de conmutación.El caso de alimentar una carga inductiva es estudiado en el capítulo 6. El controlador requiere una extensión dinámica debido a que la amplitud de la tensión de estator es una salida de grado relativo cero. Como resultado, un controlador robusto, que no depende de los parámetros de la máquina ni de los valores de carga es obtenido. En el capítulo 7 los resultados de simulación y experimentales para los controladores diseñados para el WRSG actuando en isla son presentados. En primer lugar, una descripción completa del banco es presentada. Esta incluye detalles de la etapa de adquisición de datos y de la DSP utilizada. En segundo lugar, se hace la descripción del procedimiento de simulación. Luego, las simulaciones y experimentos, que contienen diferentes escenarios, con cambios de referencia y variaciones de carga para cada controlador son presentados. / The control of the stand-alone the wound rotor synchronous generator has been analyzed in this dissertation. For this islanded configuration, the mechanical speed determines the frequency, and the rotor voltage is used to set the stator voltage amplitude. Due to the electrical time constant is so fast compared with the mechanical time constants, the mechanical speed was considered constant and externally regulated and the research was focused on the stator voltage amplitude regulation.Four different controllers based on sliding mode control techniques were designed in the dq reference frame. The obtained control laws regulate the stator voltage amplitude irrespectively of the load value. Furthermore, only voltage and rotor position measures (to compute the dq transformation), are required. The stability of the obtained equilibrium points was proved at least using small-signal analysis. Simulation and experimental validation of each controller containing several scenarios were carried out. The obtained results validate the designs and show the main advantages and disadvantages of each closed loop system. Chapter 2 covers the modeling issues of the wound rotor synchronous machine. From the general three-phase dynamical equations, and using the Park transformation, the dq-model of the stand-alone wound rotor synchronous generator feeding both a resistive and an inductive load are obtained. Equilibrium points of the obtained systems are analyzed and, after defining the control objective, the desired equilibrium points are computed.Finally, linear approximated models are obtained and their transfer functions are also presented.PI controllers are the most used in the industry because they offers good performance and are easily implementables. In Chapter 3 we obtain the tuning rule for the PI controller, and we analyze these results in order to propose new controllers which improve the classic PI approach.The sliding mode control scheme for the WRSG connected to a resistive load is designed in Chapter 4. It also includes a complete stability analysis of the closed loop system. Chapter 5 presents two sliding mode designs to regulate the stator voltage amplitude for a stand-alone wound rotor synchronous generator. Both use the stator voltage d-component error in the switching function. The first case is a nested controller, where an outer PI loop is added to provide the proper d-voltage component reference. In the second approach an integral term is added to the switching function. The case of feeding an inductive load is studied in Chapter 6. The controller introduces a dynamic extension because the stator voltage amplitude is a zero relative degree output. As result, a robust controller, which neither depends on the machine parameters nor on the load values, is obtained. In Chapter 7 the simulation and the experimental results of the designed controllers for the stand-alone wound rotor synchronous generator are presented. Firstly, a complete description of the bench is provided. It also includes details of the data acquisition stage and the used DSP card. Secondly, the description of the simulation procedure is commented. Then, the simulation and experiments which contains several scenarios, with reference change and load variations evaluated for each controller are presented.

Many problems in tracking control have been identified over the years, such as the availability of systems states, the presence of noise and system uncertainties, and speed of response, just to name a few. This thesis is concerned with developing novel integrated control and estimation algorithms to overcome some of these problems in order to achieve an efficient tracking performance. Since there are some significant advantages associated with Sliding Mode Control (SMC) or Variable Structure Control (VSC), (fast regulation rate and robustness to uncertainties), this research reviews and extends new filtering concepts for state estimation, referred to as the Variable Structure Filter (VSF)and Smooth Variable Structure Filter (SVSF). These are based on the philosophy of Sliding Mode Control.<p>The VSF filter is designed to estimate some of the states of a plant when noise and uncertainties are presented. This is accomplished by refining an estimate of the states in an iterative fashion using two filter gains, one based on a noiseless system with no uncertainties and the second gain which reflects these uncertainties. The VSF is combined seamlessly with the Sliding Mode Controller to produce an integrated controller called a Sliding Mode Controller and Filter (SMCF). This new controller is shown to be a robust and effective integrated control strategy for linear systems. For nonlinear systems, a novel integrated control strategy called the Smooth Sliding Mode Controller and Filter (SSMCF), fuses the SMC and SVSF in a particular form to address nonlinearities. The gain term in the SVSF is redefined to form a new algorithm called the SVSF with revised gain in order to obtain a better estimation performance. Its performance is compared to that of the Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) when applied to a particular nonlinear plant.<p>The SMCF and SSMCF are applied to the experimental prototype of a precision positioning hydraulic system called an ElectroHydraulic Actuator (EHA) system. The EHA system is known to display nonlinear characteristics but can approximate linear behavior under certain operating conditions, making it ideal to test the robustness of the proposed controllers.<p>The main conclusion drawn in this research was that the SMCF and SSMCF as developed and implemented, do exhibit robust and high performance state estimation and trajectory tracking control given modeling uncertainties and noise. The controllers were applied to a prototype EHA which demonstrated the use of the controllers in a real world application. It was also concluded that the application of the concepts of VSC for the controller can alleviate a challenging mechanical problem caused by a slip-stick characteristic in friction. Another conclusion is that the revised form of the SVSF could obtain robust and fast state estimation for nonlinear systems.<p>The original contributions of the research include: i) proposing the SMCF and SSMCF, ii) applying the Sliding Mode Controller to suppress cross-over oscillations caused by the slip-stick characteristics in friction which often occur in mechanical systems, iii) the first application of the SVSF for state estimation and iv) a comparative study of the SVSF and Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) to the EHA demonstrating the superiority of the SVSF for state estimation performance under both steady-state and transient conditions for the application considered.<p>The dissertation is written in a paper format unlike the traditional Ph.D thesis manuscript. The content of the thesis discourse is based on five manuscripts which are appended at the end of the thesis. Fundamental principles and concepts associated with SMC, VSF, SVSF and the fused controllers are introduced. For each paper, the objectives, approaches, typical results, conclusions and major contributions are presented. Major conclusions are summarized and original contributions reiterated.