2016 Volume 24 Issue 3 Pages 137-142
In the conveyance system of a thin steel plate production line, there is a problem that the quality of the plate surface deteriorates over time because the plate is always in contact with rollers. To solve this problem, electromagnetic levitation technologies have been studied. We propose a levitation of an ultrathin steel plate that is bent to the extent that the plate does not induce plastic deformation. It has been confirmed that vibrations are suppressed and levitation performance is improved. In this study, in order to examine the levitation stability and to compare the levitation performance, bending levitation experiments were carried out on the basis of the optimal control and sliding mode control theory which has robustness using thin steel plate with a thickness of 0.18 mm, 0.24 mm, 0.27 mm and 0.30 mm. It was concluded that using sliding mode control, levitation performance was constant regardless of tilt angle of electromagnets and higher than optimal control. Moreover, sliding mode control showed desirable levitation performance against disturbance. Therefore, we confirmed the utility of sliding mode control to a bending electromagnetic levitation system.
