Embedded controller design for an active damper system

In this paper, we address the design and implementation of a mechatronic system used to automatically adjust the damping coefficient of a bridge system prototype in the boundary layer wind tunnel laboratory at the University of Western Ontario (UWO). This is achieved by adjusting the orifice diameters of four air dampers using a microprocessor-based system equipped with appropriate sensors and actuators. The embedded controller accepts user-defined damping coefficients as inputs and provides position commands to drive the servomotors that change the orifice diameters of the dampers. Experimental results are presented and the system design and performance are evaluated.