A robust, discrete, near time-optimal controller for hard disk drives

This paper presents a robust, discrete, near time-optimal control algorithm for hard disk drives. Building on the continuous-time control law of Newman [Trans. Automatic Control 35 (7) (1990) 841] and Newman and Souccar [J. Dynamic Syst. Measure. Control 113 (1991) 363], the chattering phenomenon for continuous-time systems is first examined, and it is shown how additional chattering can occur in the discrete-time case. A criterion for the selection of control parameters to prevent chattering in the discrete-time case while assuring controller stability is then suggested. The controller developed is applied to a commercial hard disk drive. Compared to the more commonly used PTOS, the proposed controller significantly reduces chattering while maintaining comparable seek time to reach the destination track. (C) 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.