Generalization of the cascade principle in view of a structured form of mechatronic systems

With the steady increase in microcontroller performance, mechatronic systems have become more and more complex. This requires new organizational structures both in system design and in controller structure. For system design, a practical way of structuring mechanical systems vertically and horizontally has already been presented in a number of papers. This structure has to be reflected in the controller as well. The aim of this paper is to adapt and combine well-known controller design techniques to make up a new and well-structured way of controller design tailored to the organizational structure of mechatronic design. After a brief overview of the mechatronic design structure, this new controller design technique will be presented on the basis of the cascade structure of SISO controllers and the centralized controllers with state-vector feedback. For an example, the controller of a new modular railway system is presented, with special emphasis on the active suspension/tilt system