MSc: Mechanical Engineering/Systems Control - Suppression of periodic disturbance in a repetitive

This internship assignment focuses on media transport in high-productivity printing systems, where large and heavy media must be transported with high precision to ensure accurate dot placement and prevent print quality defects.

In many printing applications, a belt-driven system is used to transport the media and position it accurately beneath the printheads. A particularly challenging scenario is continuous printing, where the belt, and therefore the media, moves continuously while ink is laid down.

The belt system consists of multiple rollers around which the belt is wrapped. These rollers vary in radius, have manufacturing tolerances, and may exhibit eccentricity. Together, these factors introduce periodic disturbances in the belt’s motion, disrupting the constant velocity required for precise transport. As a result, achieving micrometre positioning accuracy of the media under the printheads becomes difficult.

Conventional control approaches, combining feedback and feedforward methods, are insufficient because they cannot adequately compensate for high-frequency disturbances. To address this limitation, a more advanced control strategy is required, one that can adapt online and adjust its control input to compensate for repetitive disturbances in the system.

Your assignment

1. Identifying the dominant periodic disturbances in the belt system.
2. Developing a method to online measure those dominant frequencies, even if they shift over time.
3. Developing a control strategy that compensates for these disturbances to reduce the error.

Your profile

• You are currently studying a Master’s in Mechanical Engineering or Systems and Control.
• You have experience with learning control techniques.
• You are suitable for a full-time internship of 11/14 weeks.
• You are able to work on our premises in Venlo R&D for at least 3 days a week.
• You master Matlab/Simulink programming.
• You are fluent in English or Dutch.

What’s in it for you?

• A challenging assignment with skilled coaching.
• Internship/ Graduation compensation up to €500,- per month.
• Travel cost compensation if you don’t have an ‘OV-weekcard’.
• The possibility to network with professionals inside and outside your field of expertise, thanks to our diversity of disciplines which you will work with.

About Canon Production Printing

We develop and manufacture high-tech printing products and workflow software for the commercial printing market as part of Canon, a global leader in imaging technologies. With around 3,300 employees across three continents and our headquarters in Venlo, the Netherlands, we innovate to create high-quality solutions. Our culture is built on openness, collegiality, trust and stability. We empower our people to grow, take initiative, and make an impact.