Active spindle system for a rotary planing machine

This paper presents the experimental validation of an active control approach to improve the damping of a spindle system for wood machining. The active control was implemented using piezoelectric actuators in push–pull configuration with real-time control capabilities. The adaptive control strategy based on the linear quadratic Gaussian is first modeled within MATLAB/Simulink and then implemented on the real spindle system. Experimental tests were performed on the small-scale planer prototype to validate the simulation models. Moreover a cutting force observer which can be used to continuously monitor the cutting process is also implemented and its performance is presented.