Identification and Position Control of an Electromagnetic Clutch Actuator

Using an electromagnet as direct source of axial force generation is not yet very common in automotive clutch applications because of the inherently nonlinear dynamics. In this article a physically reasoned model is used to describe the electromagnetic clutch actuator's behavior and system Identification is carried out in order to design a model-based controller. Special attention is paid to the determination of the current-and position-dependent inductance. In addition, a flatness-based position controller is developed that enables smooth armature motion without introducing unwanted torque jerks. Experimental results obtained on an actuator test bench show the effectiveness of the proposed controller.