ACTIVE MAGNETIC VIBRATION ISOLATION

MANY PRECISION POINTING AND TRACKING SYSTEMS OPERATE IN VIBRATION ENVIRONMENTS THAT REQUIRE VIBRATION ISOLATION TO CHIEVE DESIRED PERFORMANCE. ACTIVE VIBRATION ISOLATION SYSTEMS UTILIZING HIGH-FORCE CAPABILITY, NONLINEAR MAGNETIC ACTUATORS ARE A PROMISING MEANS OF ACHIEVING THE REQUIRED HIGH PERFORMANCE VIBRATION ISOLATION. THEIR DESIRABLE CHARACTERISTIC INCLUDE HIGH BANDWIDTH, HIGH-FORCE CAPABILITY, STABILITY, HIGH EFFICIENCY, MULTI-AXIS CAPABILITY, AND EASE OF INTEGRATION WITH ELECTRONIC CONTROL SYSTEMS. THE KEY AREAS OF RESEARCH INVOLVE THE INHERENTLY NONLINEAR NATURE OF THE HIGH-FORCE CAPABILITY ELECTROMAGNETIC ACTUATORS, BECAUSE THE NONLINEARITIES INCREASE THE COMPLEXITY OF MODELLING, ESTIMATING, AND CONTROLLING THE PLANT. THE DESIGN OF THE CONTROLLER, INCLUDING AN ESTIMATOR, IS ESSENTIAL FOR ACHIEVING THE PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS FOR ELECTROMAGNETIC VIBRATION ISOLATION SYSTEMS. RESEARCH TO DEVELOP THIS TECHNOLOGY FOR A SINGLE-DEGREE-OF-FREEDOM SYSTEM HAS BEEN INITIATED AS JOINT PROGRAM WITH SATCON AND MIT PERSONNEL. THE PROPOSED PROGRAM WOULD EXPAND THIS RESEARCH AND TO A SYSTEM WITH SIX-DEGREESOF-FREEDOM.