Limits of achievable performance and controller design for the structural control benchmark problem

In this work we give a methodology for controller design and analysis which accounts for the following design criteria: (a) optimal system response to external disturbances, (b) robustness to modeling uncertainty, and (c) constraints on the controller order. The methodology is applied to a structural control benchmark problem sponsored by the ASCI Committee on Structural Control. The structural system considered consists of a scale model of a three-storey building employing an active mass driver to suppress ground motion disturbances. The final design is validated using extensive analysis and nonlinear simulations.