The application of a constrained receding horizon control technique to stabilise an indoor vectored-thrust flight experiment, known as the Caltech ducted fan, is given. The receding horizon control problem is formulated as a constrained optimal control problem and solved in real time with an efficient, computational method that combines nonlinear control theory, B-spline basis functions, and nonlinear programming. Characteristic issues, including non-zero computational times, convergence properties, choice of horizon length and terminal cost are discussed. The study validates the applicability of real-time receding horizon control for constrained systems with fast dynamics.
This paper details the application of a constrained receding horizon control strategy t o an indoor vectoredthrust flight experiment known as the Caltech Ducted Fan. The strategy is used to stabilize the experiment about one operating point, and step response and disturbance rejection are examined with different configurations and in comparison t o a gain-scheduled LQR controller. Issues related to non-zero computation times, choice of horizon length and terminal cost are discussed.
IntroductionIn receding horizon control, an open-loop trajectory is found by solving a finite-horizon optimal control problem starting from the current state. The controls of this trajectory are then applied for a certain fraction of the horizon length, after which the process is repeated. See [6] for a good review of recent work in this field. This approach has been used in the process control industry successfully for some time, where dynamics are relatively slow, but the computing power required and the tendency for naive implementations to unstabilize a system have prevented its use on fast, stability critical nonlinear systems. Recently, however, theoretical results regarding stability properties of receding horizon controllers and ever increasing computing power have revived interest in the scheme.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.