Title: Weigh feeder using steady state input

Authors: T. Sato

Addresses: Division of Mechanical System, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, University of Hyogo, 2167 Shosha, Himeji, Hyogo, 671-2201, Japan

Abstract: The present paper proposes a new method for designing a weigh feeder control system. The model of a weigh feeder cannot be obtained accurately because its dynamic characteristics are time varying and its high frequency vibration modes are not easily identified. In the present paper, a weigh feeder is approximated as a first-order plus integrator system, and a self-tuning controller is designed on the basis of the approximated model to estimate its gain recursively. The purpose of this study is to design a controller to be actually employed in industry. To this end, a controller is assumed to consist of proportional gain for control error and steady state control input. As a result, the proposed controller has a simple structure and its controller parameters can be understood intuitively. Consequently, the proposed design method can be easily adopted in industry. Numerical and experimental results demonstrate its effectiveness.

Keywords: weigh feeders; steady state input; ramp-type reference input; proportional gain; self-tuning control; weigh feeder control; controller design.

DOI: 10.1504/IJCAT.2011.042242

International Journal of Computer Applications in Technology, 2011 Vol.41 No.1/2, pp.125 - 131

Published online: 01 Sep 2011 *

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