POSITION SENSOR FOR MAGNETICALLY SUSPENDED MEMBER

Abstract: Apparatus for providing a signal representative of armature displacement in a magnetic bearing assembly for a magnetic suspension system, of the type having a force sensor (34, 36) applied in a closed loop to provide a linear response with respect to an input force command signal. Signals representative of currents (I₁, I₂) applied to the magnetising coils (22,24;26,28) and of the sensed force are used to derive the armature displacement signal. The signal so derived is applied to modulate the magnetic flux and obviates the need for proximity devices for sensing armature displacement. A circuit (88) for generating the armature displacement signal is provided.

Description: This invention relates generally to magnetic suspensions for pointing instruments on a levitated member, movable in rotation about an axis or in linear translation. More particularly, the invention pertains to an electronic circuit configuration for determining the position of a suspension member with respect to associated electromagnetic actuators, for use in linearising the applied deflection force. Magnetic suspensions are particularly well adapted for substantially frictionless suspension of a movable member. Prior suspensions of this type utilising magnetic bearing assemblies, in which it is desired to provide an output force linearly proportional to a commanded input force, require compensation for the non-linear nature of the magnetic circuit, since the force obtained is a non-linear function of coil current and the air gap between the magnetising coils and the movable member. The resulting magnetic force F has been found to be of the form F = K I²/g² (1) where I is the current applied to an actuator coil, g is the air gap between a magnetically permeable core of the coil and the magnetic suspension member, and K is a factor of proportionality. Since the magnetic actuator typically consists of two essentially identical magnetic circuits applying oppositely-directed forces to a common rotor or armature, it may be shown that the square law current characteristic can be compensated by applying a fixed bias to the variable control current supplied to each coil. By sensing the position of the armature in the magnetic gap, the currents may be further modulated to negate the effects of the reciprocal gap-squared factor. Thus prior suspension technology has required accurate measurements of both applied current and air gap between the armature and the coil. While precise current measurements are readily obtained, making an air gap measurement with the requisite linearity and resolution requires a precision sensor which is costly to fabricate and may result in reduced system reliability. A further disadvantage of the aforementioned apparatus is that equation (1) does not allow for the effects of magnetic hysteresis, flux leakage across the gap, and other magnetic anomalies. In consequence, magnetic actuators controlled in this way have at best achieved of the order of one or two percent linearity, even under controlled conditions. In Magnetic Suspension: The Next Generation in Precision Pointing, American Astronautical Society, Paper No. AAS82-034, January 30, 1982, the present inventor discussed an apparatus for correcting for such errors. By measuring the actual force applied to the magnetic bearing, as well as the magnitude of the air gap, and feeding the actual force signal in a closed loop to correct the force command signal, there is obtained improved performance with linearity of the order of one-tenth of one percent and compensation for the effects of the magnetic anomalies. However achieving an accurate air gap measurement requires a precision proximeter transducer (proximeter). The present invention obviates the need for a precise measurement of armature position in the gap when used in a force-loop system. In DE-A-3202866 there is disclosed a magnetic bearing arrangement in which the applied force is calculated but the air gap is still measured which again requires a precision proximeter. The invention is defined in the appended claims and provides an improved magnetic suspension for applying a desired force to a magnetically permeable armature which is thereby positioned in a magnetic field formed by energising a plurality of coils, whereat a measure of the airgap between the armature and coils is found by the magnitude of the force applied to the armature. A force sensor is coupled to the armature to develop a signal corresponding to the actual force, and the currents applied to the coils are also measure. By combining the force signal and the currents, a new signal is derived which corresponds to the magnitude of the air gap, and which is used to control the coil currents so that the actual force is linearly proportional to a force command signal. A magnetic bearing system in accordance with the present invention will now be described in greater detail, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:- Figure 1 is an elevation view showing the relationship of a fixed and movable body and associated magnetic suspension assembly, Figure 2 is a conceptual view in cross section of a magnetic bearing assembly of the prior art, Figure 3 is an electrical schematic diagram of the electronic controls for a magnetic suspension including the force sensor and air gap estimating features of the present invention, and Figure 4 is an electrical schematic diagram of an analogue divider/multiplier circuit for use in the gap estimating circuit of the present invention. Referring first to Figure 1, a pair of magnetic bearing assemblies 10 and 12 is shown as supporting a movable body 14 above a fixed body 16. Each magnetic bearing assembly is comprised of a stator 18 and 20 for supporting opposing coils for producing a magnetic flux when energised by an applied current. Armatures 30 and 32 are formed from a magnetically permeable material such as iron and disposed within an air gap between coils 22, 24 and 26, 28, respectively. When an electrical current is applied to the coils, a magnetic field is established which causes a predetermined force to be applied to the armatures. Since the armatures 30, 32 are fixed to the movable body 14, the body is caused to be suspended with a predetermined air gap between the respective armature and its associated coils. By varying the applied currents, the resulting magnetic fields will cause the movable body 14 to be levitated linearly or inclined angularly in accordance with the applied currents. Also shown in Figure 1 are transducers 34 and 36 which are used to sense the magnetic force applied to the movable body 14, in a manner to be described. Referring now to Figure 2, a magnetic bearing assembly 40 of the prior art for use with a magnetic suspension is shown in cross section. Each magnetic bearing assembly 40 includes electromagnets 42 and 44, comprised of a magnetic core and associated coil 46 and 48. An armature or rotor plate 50 of magnetic material is disposed between the face of the electromagnets 42 and 44. The electromagnets 42,44 apply opposing forces to the rotor 50. When a signal current I₁ is applied to the coil 48, the rotor is attracted in the direction of the electromagnet 44. Conversely, when a signal current I₂ is applied to the coil 46 of the electromagnet 42, the rotor is attracted in the direction of the electromagnet 42. A proximity transducer 52 is included with each magnetic bearing assembly 40 to produce a signal which is proportional to the distance Δ g from the position of the displaced rotor 50 to a predetermined reference point g o in the plane of the rotor neutral position. The proximiter may be a conventional eddy-current pick-off device, the signal output of which is proportional in magnitude and sense to any change in the gap length from the predetermined value, this signal being processed and amplified so as to produce a current proportional to a change in the airgap. These signals are used for compensating for the inherent non-linearity of magnetic flux resulting from an applied current in the magnetic bearings. It will be shown that the proximiter signal may be used to modulate the electromagnetic flux so as to linearise the resulting force applied to the rotor 50. Referring now to Figure 3, there is shown a block diagram of a circuit suitable for controlling a magnetic bearing assembly 62. The circuit of Figure 3 represents the elements necessary to control a single magnetic bearing assembly. Like circuits will be provided for each magnetic bearing assembly, of which normally a plurality will be provided. The primary components for controlling the force applied to the rotor 50 are a summing junction 64, integrator and gain 66 and control low network 68, a servo amplifier loop 70, a magnetic bearing assembly 62, and a force sensor 72. A force command signal 74 is applied to an input terminal of the summing junction 64 and processed through the conventional integrator and gain 66. The integrated signal is then applied to the control law 68, function of which is to linearise the applied magnetic force field with respect to the force command 74. As described above with respect to equation (1), it is known in the art that the use of a magnetic bearing as a linear force actuator requires that the response be modified in accordance with a control law to compensate for the non-linear nature of the magnetic circuit. Since the magnetic actuator consists of two magnetic circuits applying opposite-directed forces to a common rotor, the current-squared term I² can be corrected by applying a bias current to each circuit to which a control current is added on one side and subtracted on the other side, which will result in a net force proportional to the control current. Similarly, the currents can be modulated by applying positive and negative current increments corresponding to the air gap between the rotor and its respective electromagnet. When the rotor moves in the magnetic gap, the currents will be modulated to compensate for the effects of the inverse gap-squared law. The resulting control law is of the form:- where I O is the bias current, Δ g is the displacement of the rotor from the gap center g o , F is the applied force, and F MAX is the maximum design force for the magnetic bearing assembly. The applied currents I₁ and I₂ may be readily measured by conventional current sampling devices, while the gap signal Δ g has heretofore been provided by the proximeter 52 as shown in Figure 2. The servo loop 70 is comprised of a summing network 75, servo amplifier 76 and feedback path 78. The loop is closed to ensure that the current in the coils is correctly calibrated despite variations in coil parameters with temperature, and also to reduce the lag in response that results from the large inductance of the coil. The output of servo amplifier 76 is used to energise an electromagnet of magnetic bearing assembly 62. While the control law 68 compensates to a high degree for the non-linear magnetic field response, errors in the measurement of the gap value with respect to the actual gap will result in a force error. Further errors exist within the magnetic circuit itself since an ideal circuit was assumed in deriving the simple equations of (2). The solution that has been found effective is to measure the actual force applied by the magnetic bearing and feed back a proportional signal to the system input, thus closing the force loop 60. This approach eliminates the need for precise calibration, hysteresis corrections, etc. For this purpose, the force sensor 72 is mechanically coupled to bearing assembly 62 and provides an electrical output proportional to the applied force. The output of force sensor 72 is coupled to the summing network 64 in a polarity opposing that of the input force command 74 so that a force error signal 80 representing the difference between the commanded force signal and the sensed force is used to drive the integrator 66. The force sensor 72 must be highly linear and stable, have low hysteresis, fast response time, and extremely high resolution. It must be capable of operating in severe environments including a wide range of temperatures and pressures and avoid introducing a resonance in the force loop feedback circuit. One suitable device is a quartz resonator transducer in US-A-4,215,570 which is hereby incorporated by reference. The remaining circuit elements in force loop 60 are conventional. A disadvantage of the prior art system, as described with respect to Figure 2, which utilises both a force sensor and a proximity sensor, is the reduced reliability and added expense of providing a multiplicity of sensors. Since simulation studies indicated that under closed loop conditions position errors as high as five percent could be tolerated, an alternate approach which obviated the need for a proximity transducer was sought. Desirably, the present invention permits the armature displacement position from a knowledge of the parameters of applied current and resultant force, thus avoiding the need for the proximity transducer of the prior art. The present invention permits the replacement of the proximity transducer by a simple electrical circuit which will provide the required signal indicative of the armature gap to the control law 68. From the force equation (1), the net force resulting from the application of control current to two opposing electromagnets may be shown to be:- which relates the four variables F NET , I₁, I₂, and ▵g, wherein F NET is the resulting applied force, I₁ and I₂ are the currents applied to the electromagnets, ▵ g is the change in the armature gap from the original position g₀, and K is a factor of proportionality. Since F NET ,I₁, I₂ and g₀ are easily measured and therefore precisely known, the fourth variable ▵ g can be computed. Thus, an exact value of ▵g may be determined without a need for physical measurement of the value. While equation (3) is theoretically capable of solution, in practice it involves taking the roots of a fourth order polynomial, which is not readily accomplished with analogue electronics. However, feedback loop 82 of Figure 3 provides a means for estimating the value of ▵ g and by successive approximation returning an exact value of ▵ g to control law 68. Referring now to loop 82 of Figure 3, the measured force signal F REF which is representative of the force applied to the suspension is applied to a first input of summing junction 84 which may be comprised of a differential operational amplifier. The output signal F e is a force error signal representative of the difference between the measured force F REF and a computed force value F COMP , and is applied to integrator 86 which serves to reduce steady state errors in the feedback loop. If a steady error signal F e persists, the output of the integrator will be continuously increasing with time. This signal will drive control law 88 in a direction so as to reduce the error, and the integrator output will stop increasing only when the error signal is zero, after which the integrator will supply the necessary steady-state signal to maintain the desired magnetic field. Control law 88 may be comprised of a divider/multiplier which is caused to solve the following equation: The computed force output F COMP is applied to a second input of the summing junction 84. Since the air gaps g₁ and g₂ may be expressed in terms of a reference position g o and a variable armature gap displacement Δ g as shown in Figure 2 and equation (3), equation (4) may be used indirectly to solve for the value of Δ g, and hence determine the true gap position. Since the force error signal F e is applied to the integrator 86, the output signal on lead 90 is dependent on the force error. By appropriately configuring the integrator 86, the signal on lead 90 may be made a measure of the armature displacement and hence of the true air gap change Δ g. The computed force magnitude F COMP may be seen as directly affecting the value of Δ g on the lead 90 in the sense that increasing the force error will cause the integrator to charge in a direction so as to increase or decrease Δ g so as, in turn, to reduce the force error F e to zero. The integrator transfer function may be expressed in terms of the Laplacian operator as 1/S. The integrator 86 posesses extremely high gain at low frequencies and hence will generate whatever Δ g signal is necessary to drive the force error to zero. The output Δ g is then applied to control law 68, where it is used to compute the required magnet control currents corresponding to the applied force command 74. Referring now to Figure 4, there is shown schematically a suitable electronic system for implementing the divider/multiplier 88 of Figure 3. The primary components for accomplishing this are non-linear elements 92 and 94, configured in the form of a divider, and a non-linear element 96 configured in the form of a multiplier. Equation (3) can be rewritten in the form of: This equation is in the form of the difference to two squares as shown in equation (6) below: (A + B) (A - B) (6) The product term can be implemented with a generic non-linear device as shown at the multiplier 96, the output of which is an algebraic product of the form: (X₁ - X₂) (Y₁ - Y₂) (7) The dividers 92 and 94 perform an algebraic division which is of the form: For the algebraic divider 92, X₁ is a constant voltage provided by a Zener diode 98 scaled to represent g₀ and X₂ is the computed value of ▵g, thus making the denominator of equation (8) (g₀ - ▵g). The input I₁ to terminal Z represents the current applied to one coil of the magnetic bearing assembly. The signal ▵g is also coupled to one input of an operational amplifier 100 which is wired to perform an inversion function. Four the algebraic divider 94, X₁ is again obtained from the Zener diode 98, and the value of Z is found from the applied current I₂, representative of the current applied to an opposing coil of the magnetic bearing assembly. The signal applied to X₂ is the inverted output of signal ▵g. Thus, it will be seen that the output of divider 92 is of the form of equation (9) below and the output of divider 94 is of the form of equation (10) below:- The output 0₁ of the divider 92 is coupled to the inputs X₁ and Y₁ of the multiplier 96. The output 0₂ of the divider 94 is coupled to the input X₂ of the multiplier 96 and also inverted by an inverter 102 to provide an input to the terminal Y₂ of the multiplier 96. Thus, the output 0₃ of the multiplier 96 at the input 104 to the summing junction 84 is the product of the sum and differences of equations (9) and (10) resulting in the solution of equation (5). The dividers 92 and 94 and the multiplier 96 may be obtained by appropriately configuring an integrated circuit such as the AD 532, as manufactured by Analog Devices Inc., Norwood MA 02062, United States of America. The summing junctions 64, 75 and 84 and the inverters 100 and 102 may be formed from appropriately configured operational amplifiers. the integrator 86 may be configured by using a filter circuit and high gain operational amplifiers in a conventional manner. While the apparatus for computing the armature displacement signal is shown as analogue for illustrative purposes, it may also be implemented in digital form using conventional analogue-to-digital and digital-to-analogue converters or a programmable microprocessor. In operation, referring again to Figure 3, a force command signal 74 is applied through the summing junction 64 to the integrator 66 where it is modified by the control law 68 to provide a linear magnetic output with respect to applied currents. The signal from the control law 68 is applied through the servo amplifier loop 70 to actuate an electromagnet (not shown) in the magnetic bearing assembly 62. A force sensor 72 coupled to the magnetic bearing assembly 62 provides an output signal F REF proportional to the magnitude of the resultant force, which is returned to the summing junction 64 to derive a command error signal 80 representing the difference between the commanded force and the resulting applied force. The control law 68 requires an input ▵g representative of the air gap between an electromagnet and the armature, which is provided by the feedback loop 82 from the lead 90. The signal from the force sensor 72 is also applied to summing junction 84 and coupled to the integrator 86 which provides a ramped output. So long as there is an input signal provided, the output will continue to increase or decrease depending on the algebraic sign of the input. When the input is zero, the output will stay fixed at the previously established value. The integrator output on the lead 90 is applied to the control law circuit 88 in combination with the signals I₁ and I₂ representing currents applied to opposing electromagnets. The output F COMP is a computed force nagnitude which is subtracted from the sensed force magnitude F REF in the junction 84 to provide a force error signal F e to the integrator 86. If the computed value of the force differs from the sensed force magnitude, then an error will be generated which will cause the output of the integrator 86 to change in a direction either increasing or decreasing the signal at the lead 90 to urge the resulting force error to zero. In the steady state, the computed force will equal the sensed force, which is a necessary and sufficient condition for the output signal ▵g of the integrator 86 to be a measure of the true gap change. The signal ▵g is then applied to the control law 68 to complete the circuit operation. Since the gap position is implicitly determined from the known parameters, it need not itself be measured. Thus, advantageously, a conventional proximeter need not be provided, which results in reduced costs and increased reliability.

Claims: A magnetic bearing suspension for applying a predetermined force to an armature (30,32) positioned in a magnetic field, of the type having a plurality of opposing coils (22,24; 26,28) energised by at least first and second currents (I₁, I₂) for generating the magnetic field and spaced apart from the armature by an air gap (g), the suspension having means for providing a signal representative of an applied force, means for providing signals representative of the first and second currents, and means (82) for providing a signal representative of the magnitude of the air gap, characterised in that the means for providing a signal representative of the magnitude of the air gap comprises means (82) responsive to the applied force signal, generated by a force sensor (72) coupled to the armature for providing a measure of the force applied on the armature, and to the current signals for calculating the magnitude of the air gap. Suspension according to claim 1, characterised in that the means for calculating an air gap signal comprises circuit means (88) for providing an output signal in accordance with the expression F NET = K (1₁²/g₁² - I₂²/g₂²) wherein: F NET is a computed force in Newtons I₁ is a first applied current in Amperes, I₂ is a second applied current in Amperes, g₁ is a first air gap corresponding to a first coil, in meters, g₂ is a second air gap corresponding to a second coil, in meters, and K is a predetermined constant. Suspension according to claim 2, characterised in that the means for deriving an air gap signal further comprises means (84) for deriving a force error signal by forming an algebraic difference of the applied force signal and a computed force signal derived in accordance with said expression. Suspension according to claim 3, characterised in that it further comprises first integrator means (86) for supplying a ramped force error signal (90) proportional to the magnitude and time duration of the force error signal to said circuit means (88). Suspension according to claim 4, characterised in that it further comprises means (76) for amplifying the ramped force error signal, and feedback means (F COMP ) for applying the amplified signal to the circuit means (88) in a closed loop so as to drive the force error signal to zero and provide a resultant signal (▵g) representative of the deflection of the armature in the air gap. Suspension according to claim 5, characterised in that it further comprises: a) first algebraic divider means (92), responsive to the signal representative of the first current (I₁) and to the air gap signals, having a numerator corresponding to the first current and a denominator corresponding to a difference between a signal representative of a predetermined air gap and the armature deflection signal. b) inverter means (100) responsive to the air gap signals for providing inverted air gap signals, c) second algebraic divider means (94) responsive to the signal representative of the second current and to the inverted air gap signals, having a numerator corresponding to the second current (I₂) and a denominator corresponding to differences between said signal representative of a predetermined air gap and the inverted signals, d) means (102) for receiving a signal corresponding to the quotient of the second algebraic divider means and for inverting said signal, e) algebraic multiplier means (96) coupled to receive a first signal corresponding to the quotient of the first algebraic divider means (92), a second signal corresponding to the quotient of the second algebraic divider means (94), and a third signal corresponding to the inverted quotient of the second algebraic divider means, and for providing a signal (104) representative of sums and products thereof, thereby forming the derived force signal, and f) means (86) for coupling the derived force signal to said means for deriving a force error signal. Suspension according to claim 6, characterised in that it further comprises: a) means (64) for applying a command signal representative of the predetermined force to be applied to the armature, b) means (82) for applying the armature deflection signal, c) means (72) for applying the applied force signal, d) means (70) responsive to the command signal, the armature deflection signal, and the applied force signal for generating the first and second currents, and e) means (76) for applying the first and second currents (I₁, I₂), respectively, to opposing ones of the coils (22,24;26,28). Suspension according to claim 7, characterised in that the means for applying a command signal includes means (64) for combining the command signal and the applied force signal to obtain a command error signal (80) representative of an algebraic difference thereof for varying the magnitude of the applied currents. Suspension according to claim 8, characterised in that it comprises second integrator means (66) responsive to the magnitude and duration of the command error signal for applying a ramped command error signal for controlling the first and second currents. Suspension according to claim 9, characterised in that it further comprises means (68) for applying the armature deflection signal to modify the first and second coil currents (I₁, I₂) so that the applied force is linearly proportional to a command signal representative of the predetermined force. Suspension according to claim 10, characterised in that the means for modifying the first and second currents (I₁, I₂) includes control law means (68) responsive to the second integrator means (66) and the armature deflection signal for generating the force substantially linearly related to the command signal. Suspension according to claim 11, characterised in that the means for deriving the applied force signal comprises a force transducer (72) coupled to the suspension. Suspension according to claim 12, characterised in that the force transducer (72) is of the piezo-electric type Suspension according to claim 12, characterised in that the transducer (72) further comprising a resonant quartz crystal having a frequency of vibration proportional to an applied force and providing an output signal corresponding to said frequency.

Inventors: HAMILTON, BRIAN JOHN
Applicants: HONEYWELL INC.
Application year: 1986
Main classification: F16C39
IPC codes: G01R1, F16C39, G01D11