A sliding mode observer approach to oscillatory fault detection in commercial aircraft

The Flight Control System (FCS) is one of the most important systems in all modern aircraft. For such systems it is required to have robust Fault Detection Isolation and Reconfiguration (FDIR) functionalities with high detection performance. In this work we specifically consider the Oscillatory Failure Cases (OFC), which, if not mitigated, can cause additional structural loads for which the aircraft is not designed. A Sliding Mode Observer (SMO) based detection method is proposed for fast and consistent detection of these OFC faults. A benchmark of a generic aircraft FCS equipped with OFC simulation capabilities, as well as the presented solution for detection, have previously been presented within a competition at the 2020 IFAC World Congress.