Actuator control apparatus

• US 7,789,345 B2
• Filed: 03/03/2005
• Issued: 09/07/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/03/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nabtesco Aerospace, Inc. (Nabtesco Corporation), Nabtesco Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nabtesco Aerospace, Inc. (Nabtesco Corporation), Nabtesco Corporation
• Inventors: Matsui, Gen, Yamamoto, Tsuyoshi, Tanaka, Teruaki
• Primary Examiner(s): DeCady; Albert
• Assistant Examiner(s): DUNN, DARRIN D
• Application Number:
  US11/071,029
• Publication Number:
  US 20060198737A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,014 Days
• Field of Search: 700/2, 700/3, 700/150, 701/14, 701/33, 701/39, 605/67, 605/79, 244/99.4
• US Class Current: 244/99.4
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/048 Monitoring; Safety
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/07 where the programme is defined in the fixed connection of electrical elements, e.g. potentiometers, counters, transistors
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/21109 Field programmable gate array, fpga as I-O module
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/23265 Select device driver for actuator, sensor
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/25268 PLD programmable logic device
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/25316 Control unit and actuator in one unit, module
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 9/03 with multiple-channel loop, i.e. redundant control systems

Abstract

Herein disclosed is an actuator control apparatus, comprising primary control means for producing a control signal used to control an operation of an actuator in accordance with an instruction signal indicative of an operation of the actuator, secondary control means for producing a control signal in accordance with the instruction signal; and switching means for selectively switching one of the primary control means and the secondary control means to the other, and in which the secondary control means is less in the number of functions than the primary control means, and each of components constituting the secondary control means is easier in fault verification than a component constituting the primary control means the most difficult in fault verification among all of components constituting the primary control means.

Claims

1. An actuator control system, comprising

a plurality of actuators for driving one flight control surface of an aircraft;

a plurality of actuator control apparatuses being installed for each of said actuators, and producing a control signal used to control said each of actuators; and

a flight control computer producing an instruction signal used to control said actuator control apparatuses,

each of said actuator control apparatuses comprising;

a primary control means for producing a primary control signal in accordance with said instruction signal;

a secondary control means for producing a secondary control signal in accordance with said instruction signal, and being less in number of functions than said primary control means;

a switching means for selectively switching one of said primary control means and said secondary control means to the other; and

a slave instruction means for making said actuator not drive said flight control surface in the event that said actuator fails to operate in accordance with said instruction signal, wherein

said flight control computer controls said switching means so that said primary control signal is transmitted to said actuator as said control signal when a number of said slave instruction means having said flight control surface drive said actuator is not above a predetermined number, and controls said switching means so that said secondary control signal is transmitted to said actuator as said control signal when the number of said slave instruction means having said flight control surface drive said actuator is above said predetermined number,

each of said slave instruction means having a monitoring section to monitor faults of said actuators and to transmit a monitoring signal to said flight control computer, and a solenoid valve driver to transmit a slave instruction signal to a solenoid valve equipped on one of said actuators being in fault, and

said monitoring section monitoring the faults on the basis of said instruction signal supplied from said flight control computer, and feedback signals supplied from said actuators.

2. An actuator control system as set forth in claim 1, in which

said primary control means includes at least one of an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), and a computer having stored therein a program and operative to execute said program, and

said secondary control means is merely constituted by one of or both of an analog circuit and a PLD (Programmable Logic Device).

3. An actuator control system as set forth in claim 1, in which

each of said primary control means and said slave instruction means includes at least one of an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), and a computer having stored therein a program and having operative to execute said program, and

said secondary control means is merely constituted by one of or both of an analog circuit and a PLD (Programmable Logic Device).

4. An actuator control system as set forth in claim 1, which further comprises:

a feedback signal utilizing means for producing said control signal on the basis of a feedback signal supplied from said actuator, and in which

said primary control means and said secondary control means share said feedback signal utilizing means.