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JACIII Vol.30 No.4 pp. 1199-1208
(2026)

Research Paper:

Hybrid Control for High-Accuracy Inclination-Azimuth Regulation of Directional Drilling Attitude

Zhen Cai*,**,*** ORCID Icon, Qian Wang*, Xiang Wang*,**,†, and Pei Fu*

*School of Computer Science, Wuhan City Polytechnic University
No.127 Nanli Road, Hongshan District, Wuhan, Hubei 430072, China

**School of Automation, China University of Geosciences
No.388 Lumo Road, Hongshan District, Wuhan, Hubei 430074, China

***Hubei Key Laboratory of Advanced Control and Intelligent Automation for Complex Systems
No.388 Lumo Road, Hongshan District, Wuhan, Hubei 430074, China

Corresponding author

Received:
December 8, 2025
Accepted:
March 2, 2026
Published:
July 20, 2026
Keywords:
directional drilling, drilling tools attitude, state-feedback, hybrid control
Abstract

Precise orientation control of drilling tools is fundamental to directional drilling trajectory management. This study establishes a hybrid control framework for the high-accuracy regulation of inclination and azimuth. First, we derived a kinematic model characterizing the dynamic evolution of inclination and azimuth, explicitly addressing their coupled dynamics and azimuthal time-delay effects. A comprehensive downhole motion model was developed to capture system behavior. Distinct control strategies were formulated for the inclination and azimuth subsystems and integrated into a unified hybrid architecture. Stability analysis decomposes the system into individual control loops, with inclination stability ensured through conventional criteria, while azimuth stability is transformed into a solvable linear matrix inequality problem. Experimental validation demonstrates the superior robustness and engineering applicability of the method, achieving minimal attitude deviation under perturbed conditions. This control design provides a theoretically rigorous solution that bridges advanced control theory with practical well construction requirements.

Hybrid control of drilling attitude

Hybrid control of drilling attitude

Cite this article as:
Z. Cai, Q. Wang, X. Wang, and P. Fu, “Hybrid Control for High-Accuracy Inclination-Azimuth Regulation of Directional Drilling Attitude,” J. Adv. Comput. Intell. Intell. Inform., Vol.30 No.4, pp. 1199-1208, 2026.
Data files:
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Last updated on Jul. 19, 2026