OPTIMAL CONTROL OF BEAM DYNAMICS WITH SEGMENTED PHOTOSTRICTIVE ACTUATORS

Photostrictive materials, which have the ability to convert light directly into motion, are emerging as new actuation materials. In this paper, photostrictive elements are employed as structural actuators. Proper selection of the size and location of actuators in an intelligent system is important for optimal performance. In the present work, optimization of actuator placement and size for vibration control of a photostrictive-laminated beam is investigated. The bending moment produced by the photostrictive actuator is evaluated. A modal approach is then used to build the modal force index (MFI) function. Modal force index, which has taken into account the mode number, the spatial distribution, and the dimension of the actuator, is chosen as a performance index. A segmented actuator method is proposed to seek the optimum position and size of the actuators on the beam. Beams with different boundary conditions are considered.