Fault-tolerant control strategy based on control allocation using smart actuators

Abstract

This paper presents a networked fault-tolerant control strategy based on control allocation which is applied to a modern aircraft. The proposed method utilizes the benefits of networked control system architecture in which smart sensors/actuators are interconnected through a bi-directional digital communication network. A smart actuator, the paper focuses on, is capable of providing the supervisor level with various information on the device itself. This information on the device condition is then used to tolerate faulty actuators by re-allocating redundant actuators. Simulation results with an aircraft show that the proposed method can achieve a fast and effective compensation in the presence of actuator faults.