Automated control of water systems (irrigation canals, navigation canals, rivers etc.) relies on the measured data. The control action is calculated, in case of feedback controller, directly from the on-line measured data. If the measured data is corrupted, the calculated control action will have a different effect than it is desired. Therefore, it is crucial that the feedback controller receives good quality measurement data. On-line fault detection techniques can be applied in order to detect the faulty data and correct it. After the detection and correction of the sensor data, the controller should be able to still maintain the set point of the system. In this paper this principle using the sensor fault masking is applied to model predictive control of open channels. A case study of a reach of the northwest of the inland navigation network of France is presented. Model predictive control and water level sensor masking is applied.

Peer Reviewed