Automatic control design procedures for restructurable aircraft control

A simple, reliable automatic redesign procedure for restructurable control is discussed. This procedure is based on Linear Quadratic (LQ) design methodologies. It employs a robust control system design for the unfailed aircraft to minimize the effects of failed surfaces and to extend the time available for restructuring the Flight Control System. The procedure uses the LQ design parameters for the unfailed system as a basis for choosing the design parameters of the failed system. This philosophy alloys the engineering trade-offs that were present in the nominal design to the inherited by the restructurable design. In particular, it alloys bandwidth limitations and performance trade-offs to be incorporated in the redesigned system. The procedure also has several other desirable features. It effectively redistributes authority among the available control effectors to maximize the system performance subject to actuator limitations and constraints. It provides a graceful performance degradation as the amount of control authority lessens. When given the parameters of the unfailed aircraft, the automatic redesign procedure reproduces the nominal control system design.