Static shape control of composite plates using a curvature–displacement based algorithm

Abstract

An intuitive algorithm for the determination of voltage distribution in the application to shape control of smart structures using piezoelectric actuators is presented here. This approach uses curvature as the fine-tuning criteria on top of the common displacement-based shape control, and is an extension of the slope–displacement method developed by the same authors. The algorithm called the perturbation buildup voltage distribution (PBVD) is based on an iterative approach inspired by a previous algorithm BVD on displacement control. This method aims to provide a means of targeting the desired shape of a structure by using a higher level shape attribute, in this case curvature. Intuitive iterative parameters of the PBVD method allow the user to have better control over the degree of conformity of the structure’s shape. A natural consequence of this method is the smoothing of the resultant shape. Results show that the slopes and curvatures of the structure can be improved but at a tolerable expense of the displacement criteria. Another result of practical interest is the reduction of internal stresses compared to cases using pure displacement shape control.