Dynamic allocation for input redundant control systems

In this paper we address control systems with redundant actuators and characterize the concepts of weak and strong input redundancy. Based on this characterization, we propose a dynamic augmentation to a control scheme which performs the plant input allocation with the goal of employing each actuator in a suitable way, based on its magnitude and rate limits. The proposed theory is first developed for redundant plants without saturation and then extended to the case of magnitude saturation first and of magnitude and rate saturation next. Several simulation examples illustrate the proposed technique and show its advantages for practical application. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.