Cascade Control of Magnetic Levitation with Sliding Modes

The effectiveness and applicability of magnetic levitation systems need precise feedback control designs. A cascade control approach consisting of sliding mode control plus sliding mode control (SMC plus SMC) is designed to solve position control problem and to provide a high control performance and robustness to the magnetic levitation plant. It is shown that the SMC plus SMC cascade controller is able to eliminate the effects of the inductance related uncertainties of the electromagnetic coil of the plant and achieve a robust and precise position control. Experimental and numerical results are provided to validate the effectiveness and feasibility of the method