ADRC in output and error form: connection, equivalence, performance

In this work, we investigate two specific linear ADRC structures, namely output- and error-based. The former is considered a “standard” version of ADRC, a title obtained primarily thanks to its simplicity and effectiveness, which have spurred its adoption across multiple industries. The latter is found to be especially appealing to practitioners as its feedback error-driven structure bares similarities to conventional control solutions, like PI and PID. In this paper, we describe newly found connections between the two considered ADRC structures, which allowed us to formally establish conditions for their equivalence. Furthermore, the conducted comprehensive performance comparison between output- and error-based ADRCs has facilitated the identification of specific modules within them, which can now be conveniently used as building blocks, thus aiding the control designers in customizing ADRC-based solutions and making them most suitable for their applications.