On the control of distributed parameter systems using a multidimensional systems setting

The unique characteristic of a repetitive process is a series of sweeps, termed passes, through a set of dynamics defined over a finite duration with resetting before the start of the each new one. On each pass an output, termed the pass profile is produced which acts as a forcing function on, and hence contributes to, the dynamics of the next pass profile. This leads to the possibility that the output, i.e. the sequence of pass profiles, will contain oscillations which increase in amplitude in the pass-to-pass direction. Such behavior cannot be controlled by standard linear systems approach and instead they must be treated as a multidimensional system, i.e. information propagation in more than one independent direction. Physical examples of such processes include long-wall coal cutting and metal rolling. In this paper, stability analysis and control systems design algorithms are developed for a model where a plane, or rectangle, of information is propagated in the pass-to-pass direction. The possible use of these in the control of distributed parameter systems is then described using a fourth-order wavefront equation.