On some key issues in the windsurfer approach to adaptive robust control (Q1905926)

A number of questions that arise in joint identification, estimation and closed loop control of stable plants with no zeros on the imaginary axis are examined. The objective of the paper and the used windsurfer approach is to increase the bandwidth of a closed-loop system to a specified value through an iterative redesign procedure. It is expected that a given initial model of the plant involves a significant error in the high-frequency region. Some of the key questions examined are: When can one redesign the controller (and expand the bandwidth) without identifying? When should one re-identify? What can one achieve in the re-identification and the redesign process? Two methods for validating an identified model experimentally are presented and answers to the questions summarized. The simulation examples show that the increase of the bandwidth of the closed loop system is limited by the unstable zeros of the plant.