Modified Independent Modal Space Control Method for Active Control of Flexible Systems

A modified independent modal space control (MIMSC) method is developed for designing active vibration control systems for large flexible structures. The method accounts for the interaction between the controlled and residual modes. It also incorporates optimal placement procedures for selecting the optimal locations of the actuators in the structure in order to minimize the structural vibrations as well as the actuation effort. The MIMSC method relies on an important feature which is based on ‘time sharing’ of a small number of actuators, in the modal space, to control effectively a large number of modes. Numerical examples are presented to illustrate the application of the method to generic flexible systems. The obtained results suggest the potential of the devised method in designing efficient active control systems for large flexible structures.