National University of Singapore

Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology

Tong Heng Lee

Kok Kiong Tan

Shuzhi Ge

Qing Wang

Yaolong Lou

Teck Seng Low

Sunan Huang

Ser Yong Lim

Chun-Hung Tony Huang

Yaolong Luo

Huifang Dou

Friction existing between any two surfaces having relative motion is nonlinear, multiform, and is difficult to model. Nonlinear friction in the actuator pivot of a hard disk drive (HDD) limits the low frequency gain, which prevents the system positioning accuracy from further improvement. This problem is much more pronounced for the severe nonlinearity at the micrometer level. The conventional two-mode proximate time optimal servomechanism (PTOS) is inadequate for immediate future hard disk drives because of the existence of restrictions in the particular design approach. A triple-mode control scheme, and its variations, as presented herein, include (a) a proximate time-optimal controller (PTOC) having a relatively large output is used for track seeking, (b) a robust compensator having a relatively small output is used for track following to compensate for friction and other nonlinearities, and (c) a bridging (connection) control to guarantee the continuity of the control signals. Because of the introduction of an extra mode, additional freedoms for controler design are made available for improved performance. The robust compensator is non-model based in the sense that it does not depend on the models of friction and other nonlinearities. This makes the invention simpler and more practical than conventional systems.

Robust triple-mode compensator for hard disk drives with dynamic friction

In servomechanisms, like for example used in disk drives, disturbances, for example, friction, shock and vibration, prevent the system positioning accuracy from further improvement. These disturbances occur in a relatively low-frequency range compared to the electrical dynamics. In the present invention, an acceleration feedback control loop using a frequency-separated acceleration soft sensor () replaces the conventionally used current control loop in the low frequency range, where the disturbances occur, so as to attenuate the influence of the disturbances enclosed in the loop. The current feedback continues to manage the electrical dynamics in the high-frequency range. Estimating the required acceleration signal by a soft sensor () eliminates the need for physical accelerometers, which reduce system reliability and increase system cost. The acceleration feedback control loop constructed with the obtained acceleration signal also makes the system more robust to the parameter inaccuracies and variations within the loop. This invention can be easily implemented with either software or hardware.

Disturbance attenuation in a precision servomechanism by a frequency-separated acceleration soft sensor

A ripple suppressor/compensator useful in the general area of motion control and applicable to a wide range of servomechanisms exhibiting a force ripple characteristics, including the permanent magnet linear motors. An adaptive feed-forward control signal is generated which compensates for the ripple force, thus allowing for more precise tracking performance to be achieved.

Adaptive ripple suppression/compensation apparatus for permanent magnet linear motors

A predictive and self-tuning PI controller includes an apparatus for variably assigning gains thereto in accordance with specified time functions following a change in set-point. The control gains are computed in accordance with a plurality of input parameters and subsequently continuously adjusted to set-point errors based on a GPC approach thereby to optimize performance indices derived from simple and classical user specifications. Variation and tuning of control gains in accordance with set-point errors permits the PI controller to be useful in the general area of process control and applicable to a wider range of processes compared to traditional PI control, including time-delay processes, unstable processes and processes with time-varying dynamics.

Predictive and self-tuning PI control apparatus for expanded process control applications

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Tong Heng Lee