Nonlinear PI control for piezoelectric actuators

In this work, a nonlinear proportional-integral controller is developed for a piezoelectric actuator for tracking of constant reference signals. The goal of the controller is very fast convergence to the reference, with minimal overshoot, and the maintenance of minimal noise when the setpoint has been achieved. The gains of the nonlinear controller are found through a combined global-local search method, and both simulations and experiments are conducted to show the effectiveness of the control, and for comparison purposes.