Modeling and design of an autothrottle speed control system

This paper describes the architecture and modeling of an autothrottle servo drive system developed by Woodward MPC Corporation for a typical midsize business jet aircraft. The autothrottle speed control system automatically adjusts the throttle lever position in response to changes in thrust level demands, thus providing speed control and thrust management for the aircraft. The autothrottle servo drive system implements a speed control loop that drives the throttle lever in response to speed commands from the autothrottle speed control system. Simulation results are presented that demonstrate the accuracy and dynamic performance of the speed control system.