Applied Controls UK Ltd. developed the control system for a six Degree Of Freedom (6DOF) motion base supplied to a major US military aeroplane manufacturer. Third party, purpose-built electro-pneumatic linear actuators provided dynamic control of the Stewart platform whose motion could be defined externally and then imported into the control system via a high-level Ethernet comms channel.

The inverse kinematics routine was developed internally but the system also incorporated forward kinematics, whereby the actual motion of the linear actuators was monitored in order to determine the corresponding real world co-ordinates of the platform. This forward kinematic routine was supplied by Beckhoff and operated in realtime, allowing the end user to monitor the true performance of the motion base during its stringent test routines.

Unique features within the control system minimised the overall power consumption, compensating for the amount of payload and its distribution.

Applied Controls UK Ltd. is currently developing its own range of electro-pneumatic actuators in order to enhance the dynamic capability of its motion base control system.