Jan Maciejowski's Research: Fault-Tolerant Control
Suppose some fault occurs in an aircraft or in a chemical process
plant. It suddenly starts to behave in an unanticipated manner. Can
the aircraft still be flown, or the plant continue being operated? The
existing control systems may be able to cope, but if the change in
behaviour is large, then the control system may need to be modified,
so that it handles the modified behaviour. This research is concerned
with how this can be done automatically, and when it can
be done successfully. The research is aimed at handling unanticipated
failure modes, for which solutions have not been pre-programmed. For
example, an engine failure on a multi-engined aircraft is an
anticipated failure, and there are standard procedures for dealing
with it. But if the engine failure causes some further fault, such as
loss of hydraulic power as in the famous Sioux
City incident, then it is unlikely to have been anticipated,
and some generic response is required. Another interesting
reconfiguration "opportunity" is the DHL
Airbus incident.
The motivation for this research is increased safety of operation
of aircraft, vehicles, and industrial installations. In particular,
the expected increased use of unpiloted aircraft ("UAV's"), in both
civil and military roles, makes this research timely. Pilots handle
most airborne emergencies successfully; removing the pilot requires
this emergency-handling role to be replaced by some autonomous system.
The possibilities for automatic reconfiguration and redesign of
control systems are increased by several technological developments:
Fault-tolerant control involves both automatic system
identification and control system redesign. My research relies on
model
predictive control to achieve the control redesign.
Papers:
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This page last updated on 30 November 2004.