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Electrical Engineering (2005) DOI 10.

1007/s00202-005-0315-1

O R I G I N A L PA P E R

B. Polaj er J. Ritonja G. Stumberger z D. Dolinar J.-P. Lecointe

Decentralized PI/PD position control for active magnetic bearings

Received: 17 February 2005 / Accepted: 17 May 2005 / Published online: 16 December 2005 Springer-Verlag 2005

Abstract This paper discusses a closed-loop decentralized control for active magnetic bearings. A cascade connection of PI and PD position controllers is proposed. The control design is based on a simplied linearized model for one axis using a root locus. An excellent agreement is noticeable between simulation and experimental results. It has been shown, that the presented PI/PD control guarantees satisfactory high damping and stiffness of the overall system. Keywords Active magnetic bearings Decentralized control Position control PI/PD cascade control Root locus 1 Introduction Active magnetic bearings are used in technical applications to provide contact-less shaft suspension, e.g. in rotating electrical machines. Two radial bearings and one axial bearing are used to control the ve degrees of freedom of a shaft position, while an independent driving motor is used to control the sixth degree of freedom. No friction, no lubrication, precise position control and vibration damping make active magnetic bearings particularly appropriate and desirable in high-speed rotating machines [1]. Technical applications include compressors, centrifuges, precise machine tools, etc. Active magnetic bearings constitute an inherently unstable system. Therefore, control is required to stabilize the shaft position and to ensure an appropriate damping and stiffness of the overall system. In most cases linear control methods are employed along with the differential driving mode. Here, the
B. Polaj er (B) J. Ritonja G. Stumberger D. Dolinar z Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, University of Maribor, Smetanova 17, 2000 Maribor, Slovenia Tel.: +386-2-2511178 Fax: +386-2-2207076 E-mail: bostjan.polajzer@uni-mb.si J.-P. Lecointe Faculty of Applied Siences, University of Artois, 62400 Bethune, France

same bias current is supplied into the windings of all the electromagnets, while the position control is achieved in the xand y-axis, independently [2]. A quasi-linearization of the bearing force, as well as the required current gain and position stiffness are obtained in this way. The existence of the bias current, on the other hand, even under no load, leads to higher energy consumption and additional eddy current losses in the rotors. Many authors, therefore, propose alternative control methods, which diminish or eliminate the conventional bias current [36]. However, operation with a bias current is, mostly due to the quasi-linearization of the bearing force, still present in applications of active magnetic bearings where efciency is not critical. A decentralized PID feedback is, even nowadays, normally employed in such applications while, prior to a decade ago, more than 90% of the active magnetic bearing systems were based on PID control [7]. This paper discusses a closed-loop decentralized control for active magnetic bearings using a cascade connection of PI and PD position controllers. This control (PI/PD) enables a transparent design and guarantees a higher damping and stiffness of the overall system in comparison with the conventional PID control [8]. Additionally, the magnetic nonlinearities and cross-coupling effects, which have been determined by numeric eld computation in [9], can be incorporated into the real-time realization of the proposed control in order to achieve their direct compensation. Special attention is given to control design, which is based on a simplied linearized model for one axis using a root locus. Furthermore, control realization is described, i.e. a digital control system, measurement chains and the power supply. Finally, the simulation and experimental results are compared. Data of the discussed active magnetic bearing system are given in the appendix.

2 Dynamic model Active magnetic bearings constitute a typical electromagneto-mechanical coupled system, i.e. the electrical and mechanical subsystem are coupled through a magnetic

B. Polaj er et al. z

Fig. 1 Cross section of the studied active magnetic bearing system

vector y(t), expressed by Eq. 3, describes the measured radial shaft displacements xA (t), yA (t), xB (t) and yB (t) (Fig. 1). C is an output transformation matrix. The voltage equation 4 determines the dynamic model of a radial magnetic bearing shown in Fig. 2 [9]. The supply voltages are described by a voltage vector u(t), while the control currents ix (t), iy (t) and the bias current I0 are described by the vectors i (t) and i0 , respectively. Matrix J is given with the differential driving mode of currents i1 (t) = I0 + ix (t), i2 (t) = I0 ix (t), i3 (t) = I0 + iy (t) and i4 (t) = I0 iy (t), while R denotes the winding resistance. The symmetric and skew-symmetric matrices of the current and position partial derivatives of the ux linkages (i ,xb ) i
Fig. 2 Cross section of the studied radial magnetic bearing

and (i , xb ) are described over the entire operating range. In y this way magnetic nonlinearities, as well as magnetic crosscoupling effects, are considered in the presented dynamic model of the active magnetic bearings.

subsystem. A dynamic model of the studied active magnetic bearing system, which is shown in Fig. 1, is given by M (t) + x G (t) = Bf(i , xb ) + x
2

du ( t) + fg ,

(1) (2) (3)

3 Closed-loop control design This paper discusses a closed-loop decentralized cascade control for active magnetic bearings. Current control loops are realized by ten independent analogue PI controllers, while position control loops are realized by ve independent digital PI/PD controllers. The control structure is shown in Fig. 3, where u, i, f and y denote voltage, current, force and position vectors, respectively. im and ym are vectors of the measured currents and positions, while the reference voltage, current and position vectors are denoted as ur , ir and yr , respectively. A cascade connection of PI and PD position controllers (PI/PD controller) is proposed. The results presented in [9] show the signicant inuence of magnetic nonlinearities and cross-coupling effects. These effects degrade the static and dynamic performances of the overall system. In order to improve the systems behavior, the results of the analysis presented in [9] have to be incorporated into real-time realization of the proposed control. In this way direct compensation can be achieved for these disturbing effects. The control design is therefore based on a simplied linearized model for one axis. Furthermore, gravity and the harmonic excitation due to residual imbalance were also not considered, while the current control loops and shaft position measurements are assumed to be ideal.

xb (t) = BT x(t), y(t) = Cx(t), u(t) = i0 R + Ji (t)R (i , xb ) (i , xb ) xb (t), i (t) + + i xb

(4)

The equation of motion Eq. (1) determines the dynamic model of the magnetically suspended rigid shaft [10]. Rotationally symmetrical geometry of a shaft with residual imbalance and a constant rotational speed are assumed while neglecting axial shaft displacements, and dissipation due the rotation. Vector x(t) describes generalized coordinates, i.e. the radial displacements and inclination angles of the shaft with respect to the Cartesian coordinate system placed in the shafts mass-centre point. M and G are a diagonal mass matrix and a skew-symmetric gyroscopic matrix, respectively. Input vector f describes the current- and position-dependent magnetic bearing forces over the entire operating range. B is an input transformation matrix, while the shaft displacement vector in bearing coordinates xb (t) is described by Eq. 2. The gravity and harmonic excitation due to residual imbalance are described by vectors fg and du ( t), respectively. An output

Decentralized PI/PD position control for active magnetic bearings

yr

independent digital PI/PD position controllers

ir

independent analog PI current controllers im

ur

PWM inverter

magnetic bearings i

shaft

current measurement position measurement

ym

Fig. 3 Control structure

3.2 Stabilization Stabilization is achieved by a PD controller with a transfer function (Eq. 7), where Kd , Td and Td denote the controller gain and time constants, respectively. GPD (s) = Kd sTd + 1 . sT d + 1 (7)

Fig. 4 Scheme for a radial magnetic bearing for the y-axis

Table 1 Parameters of a simplied linearized model for one axis Data Current gain ki Position stiffness ky Rotor mass m Value 100 N/A 1.16106 N/m 5.73 kg

Two stability conditions, described by Eq. 8, are derived using the Hurwitz criterion. Moreover, the parasitic time constant Td is limited by the sampling time, while the gain Kd is limited due to the actuators maximal input to output ratio (maximal value of the control current vs. maximal allowed value of the rotor position). The time constant Td is obtained for the chosen gain Kd and the chosen time constant Td using the root locus (Fig. 5). It should be chosen appropriately close enough to, but smaller than, the value m/ky . Td > T d , Kd > ky . ki (8)

3.3 Steady state error reduction 3.1 Simplied linearized model for one axis A scheme for a radial magnetic bearing for one axis, i.e. the y-axis, is shown in Fig. 4. A simplied linearized model for one axis is described by Eq. 5, where iy (t) denotes the control current, y(t) is the rotor position and m the rotor mass. The current gain ki and the position stiffness ky , known as linearization parameters of the bearing force (Fig. 4), are determined by the numeric eld computation. Parameters of the simplied model for one axis are given in Table 1. ki iy (t) + ky y(t) = my(t). (5) A PD controller does not guarantee zero steady state error, especially when external disturbance is present. A PI controller with a transfer function (Eq. 9) is inserted in the cascade connection (Fig. 6) to reduce the steady state error. The proposed cascade connection of PI and PD position controllers can be represented by an equivalent PID-like controller with additional input lter [11]. GP I (s) = Ki sTi + 1 sTi (9)

The input-output relationship is in the Laplace domain given by a transfer function (Eq. 6). The poles of the transfer function describe an unstable system (s1,2 = G(s) = ki Y (s) . = ms 2 ky Iy (s)
ky m

450). (6)

The parameters of the PI controller are designed with regard to the inner control loop. The controller gain Ki and time constant Ti are obtained using the root locus (Fig. 7). Well-balanced choice for gain Ki and time constant Ti is required since the PI controller changes the closed-loop dynamics for the worse. The time constant Ti should be chosen short enough, yet longer than Td , to ensure reasonable damping of the conjugate-complex poles for the chosen dominant pole. An appropriate gain Ki < 1 is selected for the chosen time constant Ti .

B. Polaj er et al. z

Fig. 5 Root locus: PD controller (cross AMB poles, diamond controller zero, asterisk controller pole, plus closed-loop poles for a chosen gain Kd )

Fig. 6 Cascade closed-loop PI/PD position control

600 400 200 Im(s) 0 200 400 600 800

600

400 Re(s)

200

Fig. 7 Root locus: PI controller (cross inner closed-loop poles, circle inner closed-loop zero, asterisk controller pole, diamond controller zero, plus closed-loop poles for a chosen gain Ki )

3.4 Comparison between PI/PD and PID control A comparison between the PI/PD and the PID position control for active magnetic bearings is shown in Fig. 8a and b, as well as in Table 2, where damping and stiffness are dened for an equivalent system of closed-loop structure, i.e. a springdamper-mass suspension system. The presented PI/PD control enables a transparent design and guarantees high damping and stiffness of the closed-loop system and is, therefore, superior to conventional PID control.

4 Control implementation A dSPACE DS1103 PPC controller board is used to test the digital position control for active magnetic bearings. The position controllers are realized in parallel form with additional anti-wind-up blocks. The position measurements are performed using ve Vibro-meter TQ 401 contact-less eddy current sensors. The A/D converters resolution is below 0.04m. Analogue PI controllers are used in the current control loops along with LEM HY 10-P current sensors and analogue lters

Decentralized PI/PD position control for active magnetic bearings

Fig. 8 Root locus: a PI/PD controller, b PID controller, ( open-loop poles, (circle) zeros, + closed-loop poles)

Table 2 Comparison between PI/PD and PID control Characteristic Design Dominant poles Damping Stiffness PI/PD control Transparent Real High High PID control Complicated and indistinct Conjugate-complex Low High

5 Simulation and experimental results This section presents the simulation and experimental results of the studied active magnetic bearings. In the performed simulations a dynamic mathematical model given by Eqs. 1, 2, 3 and 4 was considered, while the inuence of the current control loops and power supply was not taken into account. Two tests were performed, i.e. the step change of the reference position from 0 to 0.1mm of the radial bearing A in the x-axis (test no. 1), and the 90N impulse disturbance on the shaft, generated by the step change of the disturbance current added to the reference current of the radial bearing A in the x-axis (test no. 2). In Fig. 9, a comparison of simulation results using the conventional PID and the proposed PI/PD position controllers are shown for both tests. In the control design of the PID controller the static and dynamic limitations of the actuator (limited controller gain), as well as the limitation of the sampling frequency (limited parasitic time constant), were considered. These limitations caused large overshoot in the time response (Fig. 9). The obtained results show that PI/PD control guarantees higher damping of the closed-loop system and is, therefore, superior to PID control. As is clear in Figs. 10 and 11, an excellent agreement of simulation and experimental results is obtained in the transient state, while a weakly damped oscillation of the measured position is noticeable in the steady state. The measured position oscillates with 78Hz (Figs. 10a, 11a), which can be identied as the systems eigenfrequency. An off-set in the measured current is noticeable due to the difference between the geometric and magnetic rotors central position (Figs. 10b, 11b). Variation in positions and currents in the y-axis is negligible in both tests. 6 Conclusion A decentralized closed-loop cascade control for active magnetic bearings is discussed in this paper. Position control

Table 3 Controller parameters Data PI current controller gain PI current controller time constant PD position controller gain PD position controller time constant PD position controller parasitic time constant PI position controller gain PI position controller time constant Sampling time Anti-wind-up time constant Position limit Control current limit Value 4.7V/A 0.00047s 20000A/m 0.0022s 0.0005s 0.3 0.005s 0.0001s 0.0005s 0.2mm 5A

of the measured signal. All controller parameters are given in Table 3. An active magnetic bearing system is supplied with ve modules, each consisting of two-channel modulation and driver electronic circuits. Inverters are realized with single-phase Hbridge circuits with a 270V DC-link. IGBT SEMIKRON SK 30 GH 123 modules with SEMIKRON SKHI 22A driver units are used. Three-state pulse width modulation is employed, where the amplitude and frequency of the triangle modulation carrier signal are 15V and 20kHz, respectively. In this way, considerable reduction of a current ripple is achieved in comparison with two-state modulation. The measured static input-output characteristic of the inverter is linear in the vicinity of the operating point (5A 2A).

B. Polaj er et al. z

20 18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 2

x 105 PID PI/PD

x A, m

0.05

0.1

0.15 t, s

0.2

0.25

0.3

0.35

Fig. 9 Time response of position xA : test no. 1 at t = 0s and test no. 2 at t = 0.15s

a
12 10 8 xA, m 6 4 2 0 2

x 10

experiment simulation

0.05

0.1

0.15 t, s

0.2

0.25

0.3

0.35

1 0.5 0 0.5 1 1.5

ixA, A

0.05

0.1

0.15 t, s

0.2

0.25

0.3

0.35

Fig. 10 Time response: a position xA , b control current ix

(test no. 1)

is performed with a cascade connection of PI and PD controllers. Their control design is based on a simplied linearized model for one axis using a root locus. The advantages of the presented PI/PD control are transparent design, simple realization and a higher closed-loop damping and stiffness in comparison with the conventional PID control. An excellent agreement between simulation and experimental results is obtained for the transient state, while a weakly damped oscillation of a measured position is noticeable in the steady state. Even though compensations for magnetic nonlinearities and cross-coupling effects had not yet been introduced, considerable improvement was achieved in the static and dynamic system performances.

Table 4 Active magnetic bearing system data Data Nominal air gap Maximal force Bias current DC-link voltage Total available power Value 0.4mm 410N 5A 270V 2.7kVA

Appendix: Active magnetic bearing system Data of active magnetic bearing system shown in Fig. 12 are listed in Table 4.

Decentralized PI/PD position control for active magnetic bearings

a
12 10 8 xA, m 6 4 2 0 2

x 105

experiment simulation

0.05

0.1

0.15 t, s

0.2

0.25

0.3

0.35

1 0.5

ixA, A

0 0.5 1 1.5

0.05

0.1

0.15 t, s

0.2

0.25

0.3

0.35

Fig. 11 Time response: a position xA , b control current ix

(test no. 2)

Fig. 12 Active magnetic bearing system

Acknowledgements This work was supported in part by the Slovene Ministry of Education, Science and Sport, Project No. P2-0115.

References
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3. Meeker DC (1996) Optimal solutions of the inverse problem in quadratic magnetic actuators. PhD Thesis, University of Virginia 4. Lichuan L (1999) Linearizing magnetic bearing actuators by constant current sum, constant voltage sum, and constant ux sum. IEEE Trans Magn 35:528535 5. Chararra A, De Miras J, Caron B (1996) Nonlinear control of a magnetic levitation system without premagnetization. IEEE Trans Control Syst Technol 4:513523 6. Panagiotis T, Wilson BC (2003) Zero- and low-bias control design for active magnetic bearings. IEEE Trans Control Syst Technol 11:889904 7. Bleuer H, G hler C, Herzog R, Larsonneur R, Mizuno T, Siega wart R, Woo S-J (1994) Application of digital signal processors for industrial magnetic bearings. IEEE Trans Control Syst Technol 2:278289 8. Knospe C (1997) PID control for magnetic bearings. In: Short course on magnetic bearings. Alexandria, Virginia, Lect 7 9. Polaj er B, Stumberger G, Ritonja J, Te ak O, Dolinar D, Hameyer z z K (2004) Impact of magnetic nonlinearities and cross-coupling effects on properties of radial active magnetic bearings. IEEE Trans Magn 40:798801 10. Ahrens M, Ku era L, Larsonneur R (1996) Performance of a magc netically suspended ywheel energy storage device. IEEE Trans Control Syst Technol 4:494502 11. Polaj er B (2002) Design and analysis of an active magnetic z bearing experimental system (Abridged). PhD Thesis, University of Maribor

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