Improved training of neural networks for the nonlinear active control of sound and vibration

Active control of sound and vibration has been the subject of a lot of research in recent years, and examples of applications are now numerous. However, few practical implementations of nonlinear active controllers have been realized. Nonlinear active controllers may be required in cases where the actuators used in active control systems exhibit nonlinear characteristics, or in cases when the structure to be controlled exhibits a nonlinear behavior. A multilayer perceptron neural-network based control structure was previously introduced as a nonlinear active controller, with a training algorithm based on an extended backpropagation scheme. This paper introduces new heuristical training algorithms for the same neural-network control structure. The objective is to develop new algorithms with faster convergence speed (by using nonlinear recursive-least-squares algorithms) and/or lower computational loads (by using an alternative approach to compute the instantaneous gradient of the cost function). Experimental results of active sound control using a nonlinear actuator with linear and nonlinear controllers are presented. The results show that some of the new algorithms can greatly improve the learning rate of the neural-network control structure, and that for the considered experimental setup a neural-network controller can outperform linear controllers.