$H_\infty$ Control Apprach to a Magnetic Levitation System with Two Poles on $j_\omega$-Axis

An H$_{\infty}$ control system design for a magnetic levitation system is presented. In the control system design, we consider the influence of both disturbances and uncertainties in the model. The main disturbances stem from the position sensors.The uncertainties are divided into electromagnetic and mechanical ones: the former are due to the gain change in the current amplifier, the influence of leakage flux and modelling error in the magnetic circuit and the latter are due to the changes of the mass and the moments of inertia of the vehicle. Therefore, the designed controller is indispensable to guarantee the robustness of this system for both stability and performance. The controller design is based on the standard H$_{\infty}$ optimal control problem. As the novel features in this paper :(1) there are two poles on j.omega.-axis in the control model;(2) an integrator is included in the controller so that equivalently there are three poles on j.omega.-axis in the model. Finally, several experiments and simulations are carried out to verify the high performance and robustness of the designed control system.m.