Fixed-time tension control for multi-roller material handling systems

Abstract

The main function of a multi-roller material handling (MaMH) system is to precisely control the tension and transport speed of web segments to ensure operational productivity and product quality. This paper proposes a fixed-time backstepping control method for the MaMH system. The proposed control method guarantees that the tracking errors of both tension and reference speed in the web segments converge to zero within a fixed time, regardless of the system’s initial states. The stability of the control method is proven based on Lyapunov stability theory. Simulation results carried out in Matlab demonstrate that the proposed control method maintains robustness and fast convergence, even when the reference value changes abruptly, thereby confirming the superior performance of the proposed method