Experimental results on sliding mode control of an electromagnetic suspension

Abstract The application of sliding mode control to stabilise an electromagnetic suspension system is presented in this paper. Unlike conventional linear control techniques, the sliding mode control method can be applied in the global sense to a class of non-linear systems. The performance and stability robustness as well as the practicality of the sliding mode controller are demonstrated using a laboratory electromagnetic suspension system. The methodology developed lends itself very well to the stabilisation of electromagnetic suspensions for use in vibration isolation platforms and magnetic bearings.