Experimental study of position controller for an electro-mechanical throttle actuator for automotive applications

Abstract

This paper introduces an electro-mechanical throttle actuator and presents its real time position controllers using a proportional-derivative-plus-conditional-integrator (PDPCI) controller. The throttle actuator is built using a linear actuation DC motor which is directly connected to the engine throttle using a metal cable. The throttle actuator system is remotely placed inside the control room for carrying out engine performance tests safely. A PC-based ratio controller system is implemented using Matlab/Simulink?? software and a NI PCI-6259 data acquisition system card. Two sets of initial PID parameters, opening and closing, are determined experimentally using combination of relay feedback method and Ziegler Nicholl formula. The performance of the throttle actuator controller is assessed in terms of percent overshoot, settling time and steady state error.