Observer based estimation of parameter variations and its application to tyre pressure diagnosis

This paper deals with an estimation method of parameter variations of dynam ic systems based on the disturbance observer. The disturbance observer is d esigned to estimate the parameter variations as disturbances. The simple le ast squares method can extract the parameter variations from the estimated disturbances which include external disturbances and noise. The proposed me thod is applied to the tyre pressure diagnosis system which can detect unde rinflated tyres in every situation such as a puncture and natural leaks usi ng wheel speed sensors already provided for anti-lock brake system. Several experimental results are shown to confirm the effectiveness of the method. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.