Experimental Analysis of the Influence of Carrier Layer Material on the Performance of the Control System of a Cantilever-Type Piezoelectric Actuator

• Published in: Materials Vol. 17; no. 1; p. 96
• Main Author: Grzybek, Dariusz
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 24.12.2023; MDPI
• Subjects: Actuators; Algorithms; Aluminum; Beams (structural); Bimorphs; Cantilever beams; Control systems; Control theory; Efficiency; Electric potential; Energy; Epoxy resins; Experiments; Glass fiber reinforced plastics; Glass-epoxy composites; Mathematical analysis; Piezoelectric actuators; Polymers; Real time; Research methodology; Sandwich structures; Voltage; Poland; United States > US; sandwich beam; piezoelectric actuator; macro fiber composite; LQR control algorithm
• ISSN: 1996-1944; 1996-1944
• DOI: 10.3390/ma17010096

The subject of this article is an experimental analysis of the control system of a composite-based piezoelectric actuator and an aluminum-based piezoelectric actuator. Analysis was performed for both the unimorph and bimorph structures. To carry out laboratory research, two piezoelectric actuators with a cantilever sandwich beam structure were manufactured. In the first beam, the carrier layer was made of glass-reinforced epoxy composite (FR4), and in the second beam, it was made of 1050 aluminum. A linear mathematical model of both actuators was also developed. A modification of the method of selecting weights in the LQR control algorithm for a cantilever-type piezoelectric actuator was proposed. The weights in the R matrix for the actuator containing a carrier layer made of stiffer material should be smaller than those for the actuator containing a carrier layer made of less stiff material. Additionally, regardless of the carrier layer material, in the case of a bimorph, the weight in the R matrix that corresponds to the control voltage of the compressing MFC patch should be smaller than the weight corresponding to the control voltage of the stretching MFC patch.