ABSTRACT
Hydraulic actuators are characterized by their ability to impart large forces at high
speeds and are used in many industrial motion systems. In applications where good
dynamic performance is important it is common to contain the actuator in a servo loop
comprising a feedback transducer and electronic controller. The majority of electronic
servo-controllers used in these systems are analogue based implementations of the
well-known PID type. However, the requirement to implement advanced control
strategies has led to an increased interest in the use of digital signal processors (DSPs)
in this field. One design approach which merits special consideration is the use of
computer simulation software to model the hydraulic plant and electronic
servo-controller, and to generate and test embedded code for the target DSP. This
application report discusses some of the issues involved in controlling linear hydraulic
actuators, and the suitability of the TMS320C28x ? DSP for such systems.