Experimental decentralised control of vibration on a plate with inertial actuators

This paper presents the decentralised active control of vibration on a plate subjected to broadband excitation, by means of two velocity feedback control units, consisting of a velocity sensor and a collocated inertial actuator. The proposed multi-channel solution outperforms the single control unit both in terms of reduction of vibration and efficiency. The performance of the control system is first investigated with respect to the two feedback gains, in terms of total kinetic energy, mechanical power absorbed by the control units from the structure, and electrical power supplied. Secondly, the single powers absorbed and required by each single unit are analysed, in order to explore a local tuning solution. Finally, the efficiency of the different solutions is compared in terms of reduction of vibration with respect to the electrical power supplied. It is found that the multi-channel solution is more efficient than the single-channel one, since it provides a larger reduction of vibration with the same amount of electrical power provided.