Discrete-time MRAC with minimal controller synthesis of an electronic throttle body

Hyperstability-based model reference adaptive controllers that use a Minimal Controller Synthesis (MCS) algorithm are known in the literature as MCS controllers. The adaptation gains that arise in the continuous-time MCS algorithm are nonlinear and, as a consequence, practical implementations have to be carried out in a digital fashion. However, the discrete-time versions of the MCS that have been used so far for implementation purposes are not proved to be asymptotically stable for plants from second order up. Recently, some of the authors have developed a hyperstable, discrete-time MCS algorithm with a formal proof of asymptotic stability for generic n-dimensional plants that can be used to control discretized continuous-time plants. This paper deals with the implementation and performance analysis of this algorithm to the problem of controlling an electronic throttle body in automotive engineering.