Discrete‐time variable structure control of seismically excited building structures

Generally, the active structural control system belongs to the discrete‐time control system, and the sampling period is one of the most important factors that would directly affect the performance of the control system. In this paper, active control approaches by using the discrete‐time variable structure control theory are studied for reducing the dynamic responses of seismically excited building structures. Based on the discrete reaching law method, a feedback controller which includes the sampling period is presented. The controller is extended by introducing the saturated control method to avoid the adverse effect when the actuators are saturated due to unexpected extreme earthquakes. The simulation results are obtained for a single‐degree‐of‐freedom (SDOF) system and a MDOF shear building equipped with active brace system (ABS) under seismic excitations. It is found that the discrete variable structure control approach and its saturated control method presented in this paper are quite effective. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Modified sliding‐mode bang–bang control for seismically excited linear structures

Recently, sliding‐mode control (SMC) methods have been investigated for application to seismically excited civil engineering structures and have proved to be effective control strategic methods. On the other hand, although another class of well‐known optimal control laws, the so‐called ‘bang–bang’ control, has been investigated for several decades, their potential in civil engineering structural control has not been fully exploited. The purpose of this paper is to present a new control law for civil engineering structures, which is the sliding‐mode bang–bang control (SMBBC). The SMBBC method is a combination of the SMC and the bang–bang control. In consideration of actuators not suitable for high‐speed switching of control forces in the SMBBC in practice, modified sliding‐mode bang–bang control (MSMBBC) law is proposed and demonstrated to be able to provide the same control effects as the SMBBC case. Condition modified sliding‐mode bang–bang control (CMSMBBC) law is also investigated in this paper. In the CMSMBBC case, actuators act only when response quantities exceed some designated threshold values. The determination method of maximum control‐forces for actuators is investigated through example computation. The performance and robustness of the proposed control methods are all demonstrated by numerical simulation. Simulation results demonstrate that the presented methods are viable and an attractive control strategy for application to seismically excited linear structures. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Statistical performance analysis of seismic‐excited structures with active interaction control

This paper presents a statistical performance analysis of a semi‐active structural control system for suppressing the vibration response of building structures during strong seismic events. The proposed semi‐active mass damper device consists of a high‐frequency mass damper with large stiffness, and an actively controlled interaction element that connects the mass damper to the structure. Through actively modulating the operating states of the interaction elements according to pre‐specified control logic, vibrational energy in the structure is dissipated in the mass damper device and the vibration of the structure is thus suppressed. The control logic, categorized under active interaction control, is defined directly in physical space by minimizing the inter‐storey drift of the structure to the maximum extent. This semi‐active structural control approach has been shown to be effective in reducing the vibration response of building structures due to specific earthquake ground motions. To further evaluate the control performance, a Monte Carlo simulation of the seismic response of a three‐storey steel‐framed building model equipped with the proposed semi‐active mass damper device is performed based on a large ensemble of artificially generated earthquake ground motions. A procedure for generating code‐compatible artificial earthquake accelerograms is also briefly described. The results obtained clearly demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed semi‐active mass damper device in controlling vibrations of building structures during large earthquakes. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Experimental study of the semi‐active control of building structures using the shaking table

A magnetorheological (MR) damper has been manufactured and tested and a non‐linear model is discussed. The parameters for the model are identified from an identification set of experimental data; these parameters are then used to reconstruct the force vs. displacement and the force vs. velocity hysteresis cycles of the MR damper for the hysteretic model. Then experiments are conducted on a three‐storey frame model using impact excitation, which identifies dynamic parameters of the model equipped with and without the MR damper. Natural frequencies, damping ratios and mode shapes, as well as structural properties, such as the mass, stiffness and damping matrices, are obtained. A semi‐active control method such as a variable structure controller is studied. Based on the ‘reaching law’ method, a feedback controller is presented. In order to evaluate the efficiency of the control system and the effect of earthquake ground motions, both numerical analysis and shaking table tests of the model, with and without the MR damper, have been carried out under three different ground motions: El Centro 1940, Taft 1952, and Ninghe 1976 (Tangshan Earthquake in Chinese). It is found from both the numerical analysis and the shaking table tests that the maximum accelerations and relative displacements for all floors are significantly reduced with the MR damper. A reasonable agreement between the results obtained from the numerical analysis and those from the shaking table tests is also observed. On the other hand, tests conducted at different earthquake excitations and various excitation levels demonstrate the ability of the MR damper to surpass the performance of a comparable passive system in a variety of situations. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Compensation of time‐delay for control of civil engineering structures

Time‐delay is an important issue in structural control. Applications of unsynchronized control forces due to time‐delay may result in a degradation of the control performance and it may even render the controlled structures to be unstable. In this paper, a state‐of‐the‐art review for available methods of time‐delay compensation is presented. Then, five methods for the compensation of fixed time‐delay are presented and investigated for active control of civil engineering structures. These include the recursive response method, state‐augmented compensation method, controllability based stabilization method, the Smith predictor method and the Pade approximation method, all are applicable to any control algorithm to be used for controlled design. Numerical simulations have been conducted for MDOF building models equipped with an active control system to demonstrate the stability and control performance of these time‐delay compensation methods. Finally, the stability and performance of the phase shift method, that is well‐known in civil engineering applications, have also been critically evaluated through numerical simulations. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Sliding mode control of buildings with base‐isolation hybrid protective system

This paper investigates the application of the sliding mode control (SMC) strategies for reducing the dynamic responses of the building structures with base‐isolation hybrid protective system. It focuses on the use of reaching law method, a most attractive controller design approach of the SMC theory, for the development of control algorithms. By using the constant plus proportional rate reaching law and the power rate reaching law, two kinds of hybrid control methods are presented. The compound equation of motion of the base‐isolation hybrid building structures, which is suitable for numerical analysis, has been constructed. The simulation results are obtained for an eight‐storey shear building equipped with base‐isolation hybrid protective system under seismic excitations. It is observed that both the constant plus proportional rate reaching law and the power rate reaching law hybrid control method presented in this paper are quite effective. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

基础隔震建筑混合控制的变结构趋近律方法

本文对叠层胶支座基础震建筑的混合振动控制问题进行了研究。利用控制律设计的变结构趋近律方法,给出了相应的闭环控制律表示式。     

Stability analysis for real‐time pseudodynamic and hybrid pseudodynamic testing with multiple sources of delay

Real‐time pseudodynamic (PSD) and hybrid PSD test methods are experimental techniques to obtain the response of structures, where restoring force feedback is used by an integration algorithm to generate command displacements. Time delays in the restoring force feedback from the physical test structure and/or the analytical substructure cause inaccuracies and can potentially destabilize the system. In this paper a method for investigating the stability of structural systems involved in real‐time PSD and hybrid PSD tests with multiple sources of delay is presented. The method involves the use of the pseudodelay technique to perform an exact mapping of fixed delay terms to determine the stability boundary. The approach described here is intended to be a practical one that enables the requirements for a real‐time testing system to be established in terms of system parameters when multiple sources of delay exist. Several real‐time testing scenarios with delay that include single degree of freedom (SDOF) and multi‐degree of freedom (MDOF) real‐time PSD/hybrid PSD tests are analyzed to illustrate the method. From the stability analysis of the real‐time hybrid testing of an SDOF test structure, delay‐independent stability with respect to either experimental or analytical substructure delay is shown to exist. The conditions that the structural properties must satisfy in order for delay‐independent stability to exist are derived. Real‐time hybrid PSD testing of an MDOF structure equipped with a passive damper is also investigated, where observations from six different cases related to the stability plane behavior are summarized. Throughout this study, root locus plots are used to provide insight and explanation of the behavior of the stability boundaries. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Adaptive time series compensator for delay compensation of servo‐hydraulic actuator systems for real‐time hybrid simulation

Hydraulic actuators are typically used in a real‐time hybrid simulation to impose displacements to a test structure (also known as the experimental substructure). It is imperative that good actuator control is achieved in the real‐time hybrid simulation to minimize actuator delay that leads to incorrect simulation results. The inherent nonlinearity of an actuator as well as any nonlinear response of the experimental substructure can result in an amplitude‐dependent behavior of the servo‐hydraulic system, making it challenging to accurately control the actuator. To achieve improved control of a servo‐hydraulic system with nonlinearities, an adaptive actuator compensation scheme called the adaptive time series (ATS) compensator is developed. The ATS compensator continuously updates the coefficients of the system transfer function during a real‐time hybrid simulation using online real‐time linear regression analysis. Unlike most existing adaptive methods, the system identification procedure of the ATS compensator does not involve user‐defined adaptive gains. Through the online updating of the coefficients of the system transfer function, the ATS compensator can effectively account for the nonlinearity of the combined system, resulting in improved accuracy in actuator control. A comparison of the performance of the ATS compensator with existing linearized compensation methods shows superior results for the ATS compensator for cases involving actuator motions with predefined actuator displacement histories as well as real‐time hybrid simulations. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Semi‐active multi‐step predictive control of structures using MR dampers

A semi‐active multi‐step predictive control (SAMPC) system with magnetorheological (MR) dampers is developed to reduce the seismic responses of structures. This system can predict the next multi‐step responses of structure according to the current state and has a function of self‐compensation for time delay that occurred in real application. To study the performance of the proposed control algorithm for addressing time delay and reducing the seismic responses, a numerical example of an 11‐story structure with MR dampers is presented. Comparison with the uncontrolled structure indicates that both the peak and the norm values of structural responses are all clearly reduced when the predictive length l?10 and the delayed time step d?20 are selected, and the SAMPC strategy can guarantee the stability of the controlled structure and reduce the effects of time delay on controlled responses to a certain extent. A performance comparison is also made between the SAMPC strategy and the passive‐off and passive‐on methods; results indicate that this SAMPC system is more effective than the two passive methods in reducing structural responses subjected to earthquakes. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Equivalent force control method for generalized real‐time substructure testing with implicit integration

This paper presents a new method, called the equivalent force control method, for solving the nonlinear equations of motion in a real‐time substructure test using an implicit time integration algorithm. The method replaces the numerical iteration in implicit integration with a force‐feedback control loop, while displacement control is retained to control the motion of an actuator. The method is formulated in such a way that it represents a unified approach that also encompasses the effective force test method. The accuracy and effectiveness of the method have been demonstrated with numerical simulations of real‐time substructure tests with physical substructures represented by spring and damper elements, respectively. The method has also been validated with actual tests in which a Magnetorheological damper was used as the physical substructure. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Development of a tunable friction pendulum system for semi‐active control of building structures under earthquake ground motions

The Friction Pendulum System (FPS) isolator is commonly used as a base isolation system in buildings. In this paper, a new tunable FPS (TFPS) isolator is proposed and developed to act as a semi‐active control system by combining the traditional FPS and semi‐active control concept. Theoretical analysis and physical tests were carried out to investigate the behavior of the proposed TFPS isolator. The experimental and theoretical results were in good agreement, both suggesting that the friction force of the TFPS isolator can be tuned to achieve seismic isolation of the structure. A series of numerical simulations of a base‐isolated structure equipped with the proposed TFPS isolator and subjected to earthquake ground motions were also conducted. In the analyses, the linear quadratic regulator (LQR) method was adopted to control the friction force of the proposed TFPS, and the applicability and effectiveness of the TFPS in controlling the structure's seismic responses were investigated. The simulation results showed that the TFPS can reduce the displacement of the isolation layer without significantly increasing the floor acceleration and inter‐story displacement of the superstructure, confirming that the TFPS can effectively control a base‐isolated structure under earthquake ground motions.     

Real‐time hybrid experiments with Newmark integration,MCSmd outer‐loop control and multi‐tasking strategies

Real‐time hybrid testing is a promising technique for experimental structural dynamics, in which the structure under consideration is split into a physical test of key components and a numerical model of the remainder. The physical test and numerical analysis proceed in parallel, in real time, enabling testing of critical elements at large scale and at the correct loading rate. To date most real‐time hybrid tests have been restricted to simple configurations and have used approximate delay compensation schemes. This paper describes a real‐time hybrid testing approach in which non‐linearity is permitted in both the physical and numerical models, and in which multiple interfaces between physical and numerical substructures can be accommodated, even when this results in very stiff coupling between actuators. This is achieved using a Newmark explicit numerical solver, an advanced adaptive controller known as MCSmd and a multi‐tasking strategy. The approach is evaluated through a series of experiments on discrete mass–spring systems. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Skyline‐based ground motion selection method for nonlinear time history analysis of building structures

This paper develops a novel ground motion selection procedure for nonlinear time history analysis of critical structures. The skyline query originated from computer science is first introduced, including its concept and related algorithms. Then, the ground motion selection procedure based on skyline query is developed. Meanwhile, a new five‐dimensional vector‐valued intensity measure is defined as a critical ingredient of the selection procedure to measure the damage potential of ground motions. Finally, the process of the selection procedure is illustrated through examples of three shear models, and its efficiency is also validated. Through the examples of three shear models, the ground motion selection procedure based on skyline query proposed in this paper is proven to be capable of selecting a limited set of ground motions with high damage potentials for the nonlinear time history analysis purpose. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A novel predictor–corrector algorithm for sub‐structure pseudo‐dynamic testing

A new predictor–corrector (P–C) method for multi‐site sub‐structure pseudo‐dynamic (PSD) test is proposed. This method is a mixed time integration method in which computational components separable from experimental components are solved by implicit time integration method (Newmark β method). The experiments are performed quasi‐statically based on explicit prediction of displacement. The proposed P–C method has an important advantage as it does not require the determination of the initial stiffness values of experimental components and is thus suitable for representing elastic and inelastic systems. A parameter relating to quality of displacement prediction at boundaries nodes is introduced. This parameter is determined such that P–C method can be applicable to many practical problems. Error‐propagation characteristics of P–C method are also presented. A series of examples including linear and non‐linear soil–foundation–structure interaction problem demonstrate the performance of the proposed method. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Enhancement of real‐time hybrid simulation on a shaking table configuration with implementation of an advanced control method

This paper presents the implementation of Three Variable Control (TVC), an advanced control method, to the existing hybrid simulation (HS) system at the University of California, Berkeley. Motivation, background, and implementation of the TVC are explained together with modifications in the existing HS system. An application, which consists of the real‐time HS of electrical disconnect switches on a shaking table configuration, demonstrates successful implementation of the TVC. The presented application also covers other HS‐related features, namely employment of a three‐dimensional analytical substructure, real‐time HS‐compatible operator‐splitting integration method, and an efficient equation solver for faster computations. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.