A method for predicting the stability in roll of automatically controlled aircraft based on the experimental determination of the characteristics of an automatic pilot
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Jones, Robert T↗
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Estimates of the effectiveness of automatic control in alleviating wake vortex induced roll excursions
Estimates of the effectiveness of a model following type control system in reducing the roll excursion due to a wake vortex encounter were obtained from single degree of freedom computations with inputs derived from the results of wind tunnel, flight, and simulation experiments. The analysis indicates that the control power commanded by the automatic system must be roughly equal to the vortex induced roll acceleration if effective limiting of the maximum bank angle is to be achieved.
Tinling, B. E.↗
Automatic controls for facilities and mercury ion thrusters in durability testing
Automatic thruster and vacuum apparatus control for ion engine durability tests
Nichols, C. R.↗
Frequency-response method for determination of dynamic stability characteristics of airplanes with automatic controls
A frequency-response method for determining the critical control-gearing and hunting oscillations of airplanes with automatic pilots is presented. The method is graphical and has several advantages over the standard numerical procedure based on Routh's discriminant. The chief advantage of the method is that direct use can be made of the measured response characteristics of the automatic pilot. This feature is especially useful in determining the existence, amplitude, and frequency of the hunting oscillations that may be present when the automatic pilot has nonlinear dynamic characteristics. Several examples are worked out to illustrate the application of the frequency-response method in determining the effect of automatic-pilot lag or lead on critical control gearing and in determining the amplitude and frequency hunting. It is shown that the method may be applied to the case of a control geared to airplane motions about two axes.
Greenberg, Harry↗
Accelerometer-controlled automatic braking system
Braking system, which employs angular accelerometer to control wheel braking and results in low level of tire slip, has been developed and tested. Tests indicate that system is feasible for operations on surfaces of different slipperinesses. System restricts tire slip and is capable of adapting to rapidly-changing surface conditions.
Dreher, R. C.↗
Experimental investigation of an accelerometer controlled automatic braking system
An investigation was made to determine the feasibility of an automatic braking system for arresting the motion of an airplane by sensing and controlling braked wheel decelerations. The system was tested on a rotating drum dynamometer by using an automotive tire, wheel, and disk-brake assembly under conditions which included two tire loadings, wet and dry surfaces, and a range of ground speeds up to 70 knots. The controlling parameters were the rates at which brake pressure was applied and released and the Command Deceleration Level which governed the wheel deceleration by controlling the brake operation. Limited tests were also made with the automatic braking system installed on a ground vehicle in an effort to provide a more realistic proof of its feasibility. The results of this investigation indicate that a braking system which utilizes wheel decelerations as the control variable to restrict tire slip is feasible and capable of adapting to rapidly changing surface conditions.
Dreher, R. C.↗
Application of NASA-developed technology to the automatic control of municipal sewage treatment plants
A search was made of NASA developed technology and commercial technology for process control sensors and instrumentation which would be applicable to the operation of municipal sewage treatment plants. Several notable items were found from which process control concepts were formulated that incorporated these items into systems to automatically operate municipal sewage treatment plants. A preliminary design of the most promising concept was developed into a process control scheme for an activated sludge treatment plant. This design included process control mechanisms for maintaining constant food to sludge mass (F/M) ratio, and for such unit processes as primary sedimentation, sludge wastage, and underflow control from the final clarifier.
Hiser, L. L.↗
Development of a prototype automatic controller for liquid cooling garment inlet temperature
The development of a computer control of a liquid cooled garment (LCG) inlet temperature is descirbed. An adaptive model of the LCG is used to predict the heat-removal rates for various inlet temperatures. An experimental system that contains a microcomputer was constructed. The LCG inlet and outlet temperatures and the heat exchanger outlet temperature form the inputs to the computer. The adaptive model prediction method of control is successful during tests where the inlet temperature is automatically chosen by the computer. It is concluded that the program can be implemented in a microprocessor of a size that is practical for a life support back-pack.
Weaver, C. S.↗
Development of a digital automatic control law for steep glideslope capture and flare
A longitudinal digital guidance and control law for steep glideslopes using MLS (Microwave Landing System) data is developed for CTOL aircraft using modern estimation and control techniques. The control law covers the final approach phases of glideslope capture, glideslope tracking, and flare to touchdown for automatic landings under adverse weather conditions. The control law uses a constant gain Kalman filter to process MLS and body-mounted accelerometer data to form estimates of flight path errors and wind velocities including wind shear. The flight path error estimates and wind estimates are used for feedback in generating control surface commands. Results of a digital simulation of the aircraft dynamics and the guidance and control law are presented for various wind conditions.
Halyo, N.↗
Study and development of techniques for automatic control of remote manipulators
An overall conceptual design for an autonomous control system of remote manipulators which utilizes feedback was constructed. The system consists of a description of the high-level capabilities of a model from which design algorithms are constructed. The autonomous capability is achieved through automatic planning and locally controlled execution of the plans. The operator gives his commands in high level task-oriented terms. The system transforms these commands into a plan. It uses built-in procedural knowledge of the problem domain and an internal model of the current state of the world.
Shaket, E.↗
Braking action of wheeled vehicles is controlled automatically during minimum-distance stops
System prevents tire skid during panic stops. Two mutually dependent accelerometers directly control solenoid valve which regulates braking pressure.
Barthlome, D. E.↗
A closed-loop automatic control system for high-intensity acoustic test systems.
Sound at sound pressure levels in the range from 130 to 160 dB is used in the investigation. Random noise is passed through a series of parallel filters, generally 1/3-octave wide. A basic automatic system is investigated because of preadjustment inaccuracies and high costs found in a study of a typical manually controlled acoustic testing system. The unit described has been successfully used in automatic acoustic tests in connection with the spacecraft tests for the Mariner 1971 program.
Slusser, R. A.↗
Automatic control system generation for robot design validation
The specification and drawings present a new method, system and software product for and apparatus for generating a robotic validation system for a robot design. The robotic validation system for the robot design of a robotic system is automatically generated by converting a robot design into a generic robotic description using a predetermined format, then generating a control system from the generic robotic description and finally updating robot design parameters of the robotic system with an analysis tool using both the generic robot description and the control system.
Bacon, James A.↗
Manual and automatic control of surface effect ships
A recent investigation of crew performance in the motion environment of a large generic high speed surface effect ship by means of a motion base simulation addressed some of the helmsman's control task with an external forward visual field of the seascape and navigation and steering displays in the pilot house. In addition to the primary steering control task, a subcritical speed tracking task provided a secondary surrogate for trimming the water speed of the craft. The results of helsmen's steering describing function measurements are presented, and some suggestions for their interpretation are offered. The likely steering loop closures comprise heading and lateral displacement for the course keeping task investigated. Also discussed is the manner in which these loop closures were implemented for automatic steering of the surface effect ship. Regardless of the influence of workload, steering technique, water speed and sea state, the helmsmen apparently adopted a disturbance regulation bandwidth of about 0.2 rad/sec for lateral displacement.
Clement, W. F.↗
Automatic control of a helicopter with a hanging load
An autopilot logic is designed here for controlling a helicopter with a hanging load. A 16th order model for the system is decoupled into four subsystems: (1) a second order system for yawing motion, (2) a second order system for vertical motion, (3) a sixth order system for longitudinal motion, and (4) a sixth order system for lateral motion. A measuring scheme, which could be used in remote areas, is developed and filters are designed to estimate the state variables from these measurements. The autopilot can be used to move the load over short distances without retracting the cables. This is done by automatically shifting the autopilot modes from position-hold (hover) to acceleration-hold to velocity-hold (cruise) to deceleration-hold to velocity-hold (near hover) to position-hold (hover). Use of such an autopilot might save considerable turnaround time. The Sikorsky S-61 helicopter is chosen as an example vehicle. The performance of the controlled system is studied in the presence of longitudinal and lateral winds.
Gupta, N. K.↗
SAVLOC, computer program for automatic control and analysis of X-ray fluorescence experiments
A program for a PDP-15 computer is presented which provides for control and analysis of trace element determinations by using X-ray fluorescence. The program simultaneously handles data accumulation for one sample and analysis of data from previous samples. Data accumulation consists of sample changing, timing, and data storage. Analysis requires the locating of peaks in X-ray spectra, determination of intensities of peaks, identification of origins of peaks, and determination of a real density of the element responsible for each peak. The program may be run in either a manual (supervised) mode or an automatic (unsupervised) mode.
Leonard, R. F.↗
Python-EPICS RF Conditioning Automatic Control System at the Spallation Neutron Source
The RF Test Facility (RFTF) at the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) is used for the conditioning of RF compo-nents such as ceramic vacuum windows and power cou-plers prior to their installation in the H- ion linear accel-erator. This process exposes components to high-power RF fields and thermal cycling to improve performance and remove surface impurities. To automate and optimize this process, a Python-based EPICS control system was developed alongside targeted hardware upgrades. The system enables real-time monitoring and control of RF power levels, temperature, and vacuum pressure. A user-friendly graphical interface was implemented using CS-Studio (Phoebus), allowing operators to adjust parameters and collect data efficiently. The system integrates a High-Power Protection Module (HPM) for interlocks based on vacuum and arc detection, ensuring safe operation. These upgrades have significantly improved the efficiency, accuracy, and safety of RF conditioning at the SNS RFTF. This paper describes the updated RF conditioning sys-tem, highlighting the software and hardware develop-ments and their application in support of the Proton Pow-er Upgrade (PPU) project.
Lee, Sung-Woo [ORNL] (ORCID:000000030915835X)↗
Research in and application of modern automatic control theory to nuclear rocket dynamics and control, volume ii semiannual status report, sep. 1, 1964 - feb. 1, 1965
Liapunov method for closed loop time optimal control of linear systems with bounded control norm using eigenvector scalar product solution for Hamilton-Jacobi equation
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