Precise tip positioning of a flexible manipulator using resonant control

A single-link flexible manipulator is fabricated to represent a typical flexible robotic arm. This flexible manipulator is modeled as a SIMO system with the motor-torque as the input and the hub angle and the tip position as the outputs. The two transfer functions are identified using a frequency-domain system identification method. A feedback loop around the hub angle response with a resonant controller is designed to damp the resonant modes. A high gain integral controller is also designed to achieve zero steady-state error in the tip position response. Experiments are performed to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed control scheme

Precise tip positioning of a flexible manipulator using resonant control

A single-link flexible manipulator is fabricated to represent a typical flexible robotic arm. This flexible manipulator is modeled as an SIMO system with the motor torque as the input and the hub angle and the tip position as the outputs. The two transfer functions are identified using a frequency-domain system identification method, and the resonant modes are determined. A feedback loop around the hub angle response with a resonant controller is designed to damp the resonant modes. A high-gain integral controller is also implemented to achieve zero steady-state error in the tip position response. Experiments are performed to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed control scheme

System Identification and LMI Based Robust PID Control of a Two-Link Flexible Manipulator

This paper presents investigations into the development of a linear matrix inequalities (LMI) based robust PID control of a nonlinear Two-Link Flexible Manipulator (TLFM) incorporating payload. A set of linear models of a TLFM is obtained by using system identification method in which the linear model represents the operating ranges of the dynamic system. Thus, the LMI constraints permit to robustly guarantee a certain perturbation rejection level and a region of pole location.  To study the effectiveness of the controller, initially a PID control is developed for TLFM with varying payloads. The performances of the controllers are assessed in terms of the input tracking controller capability of the system as compared to the response with PID control. Moreover, the robustness of the LMI based robust PID control schemes is discussed. Finally, a comparative assessment of the control strategies is presented

Evolutionary algorithms for active vibration control of flexible manipulator

Flexible manipulator systems offer numerous advantages over their rigid counterparts including light weight, faster system response, among others. However, unwanted vibration will occur when flexible manipulator is subjected to disturbances. If the advantages of flexible manipulator are not to be sacrificed, an accurate model and efficient control system must be developed. This thesis presents the development of a Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) controller tuning method using evolutionary algorithms (EA) for a single-link flexible manipulator system. Initially, a single link flexible manipulator rig, constrained to move in horizontal direction, was designed and fabricated. The input and output experimental data of the hub angle and endpoint acceleration of the flexible manipulator were acquired. The dynamics of the system was later modeled using a system identification (SI) method utilizing EA with linear auto regressive with exogenous (ARX) model structure. Two novel EAs, Genetic Algorithm with Parameter Exchanger (GAPE) and Particle Swarm Optimization with Explorer (PSOE) have been developed in this study by modifying the original Genetic Algorithm (GA) and Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) algorithms. These novel algorithms were introduced for the identification of the flexible manipulator system. Their effectiveness was then evaluated in comparison to the original GA and PSO. Results indicated that the identification of the flexible manipulator system using PSOE is better compared to other methods. Next, PID controllers were tuned using EA for the input tracking and the endpoint vibration suppression of the flexible manipulator structure. For rigid motion control of hub angle, an auto-tuned PID controller was implemented. While for vibration suppression of the endpoint, several PID controllers were tuned using GA, GAPE, PSO and PSOE. The results have shown that the conventional auto-tuned PID was effective enough for the input tracking of the rigid motion. However, for end-point vibration suppression, the result showed the superiority of PID-PSOE in comparison to PID-GA, PID-GAPE and PID-PSO. The performance of the best simulated controller was validated experimentally later. Through experimental validation, it was found that the PID-PSOE was capable to suppress the vibration of the single-link flexible manipulator with highest attenuation of 31.3 dB at the first mode of the vibration. The outcomes of this research revealed the effectiveness of the PID controller tuned using PSOE for the endpoint vibration suppression of the flexible manipulator amongst other evolutionary methods

Modelling And Experimental Vibration Control Of A Two-link Three-dimensional Manipulator With Flexible Links

Current industrial and space manipulators are required to achieve higher speeds in a lighter structure without sacrificing payload capabilities. Consequently, undesirable vibration occurs during the motion. By suitable modelling of the manipulator flexibility, advanced control strategies can be formulated to improve the joint tracking performance and reduce the residual vibration of the end-point in the presence of payload uncertainties.;Toward this goal, an experimental two-link, 3D, anthropomorphic manipulator with flexible links was designed and built to be used as a test bed for the verification and refinement of the proposed modelling and control strategies.;The nonlinear equations of motion for the robot were derived using Lagrangian dynamics. The model was verified using experimental modal analysis techniques. Based on experimental results, a simplified nonlinear model, that contains the relevant modes of the system, was derived and subsequently used in controller designs and state estimation.;A conventional Proportional-plus-Derivative (PD) controller that implements joint angles feedback was designed to be used as a baseline controller due to its wide applicability on industrial manipulators.;By measuring the links tip vibration using accelerometers, several adaptive controllers and state observers were designed and implemented successfully on the manipulator, namely, a gain-scheduling linear quadratic regulator, a model reference adaptive controller, an adaptive inverse dynamics controller, a least-squares nonlinear state estimator and a robust sliding observer. The controllers performance and robustness were tested and experimentally verified against the change of the payload.;The control strategies and identification techniques, developed in this thesis, are applicable to a wide range of robot manipulators including industrial manipulators

Stanford Aerospace Research Laboratory research overview

Over the last ten years, the Stanford Aerospace Robotics Laboratory (ARL) has developed a hardware facility in which a number of space robotics issues have been, and continue to be, addressed. This paper reviews two of the current ARL research areas: navigation and control of free flying space robots, and modelling and control of extremely flexible space structures. The ARL has designed and built several semi-autonomous free-flying robots that perform numerous tasks in a zero-gravity, drag-free, two-dimensional environment. It is envisioned that future generations of these robots will be part of a human-robot team, in which the robots will operate under the task-level commands of astronauts. To make this possible, the ARL has developed a graphical user interface (GUI) with an intuitive object-level motion-direction capability. Using this interface, the ARL has demonstrated autonomous navigation, intercept and capture of moving and spinning objects, object transport, multiple-robot cooperative manipulation, and simple assemblies from both free-flying and fixed bases. The ARL has also built a number of experimental test beds on which the modelling and control of flexible manipulators has been studied. Early ARL experiments in this arena demonstrated for the first time the capability to control the end-point position of both single-link and multi-link flexible manipulators using end-point sensing. Building on these accomplishments, the ARL has been able to control payloads with unknown dynamics at the end of a flexible manipulator, and to achieve high-performance control of a multi-link flexible manipulator

Experiments in identification and control of flexible-link manipulators

Interest in the study of flexible-link manipulators for space-based applications has risen strongly in recent years. Moreover, numerous experimental results have appeared for the various problems in the modeling, identification and control of such systems. Nevertheless, relatively little literature has appeared involving laboratory verification of tuning controllers for certain types of realistic flexible-link manipulators. Specifically flexible-link manipulators which are required to maintain endpoint accuracy while manipulating loads that are possibly unknown and varying as they undergo disturbance effects from the environment and workspace. Endpoint position control of flexible-link manipulators in these areas are discussed, with laboratory setups consisting of one and two-link manipulators

Multiobjective control of a four-link flexible manipulator: A robust H∞ approach

Copyright [2002] IEEE. This material is posted here with permission of the IEEE. Such permission of the IEEE does not in any way imply IEEE endorsement of any of Brunel University's products or services. Internal or personal use of this material is permitted. However, permission to reprint/republish this material for advertising or promotional purposes or for creating new collective works for resale or redistribution must be obtained from the IEEE by writing to [email protected]. By choosing to view this document, you agree to all provisions of the copyright laws protecting it.This paper presents an approach to robust H∞ control of a real multilink flexible manipulator via regional pole assignment. We first show that the manipulator system can be approximated by a linear continuous uncertain model with exogenous disturbance input. The uncertainty occurring in an operating space is assumed to be norm-bounded and enter into both the system and control matrices. Then, a multiobjective simultaneous realization problem is studied. The purpose of this problem is to design a state feedback controller such that, for all admissible parameter uncertainties, the closed-loop system simultaneously satisfies both the prespecified H∞ norm constraint on the transfer function from the disturbance input to the system output and the prespecified circular pole constraint on the closed-loop system matrix. An algebraic parameterized approach is developed to characterize the existence conditions as well as the analytical expression of the desired controllers. Third, by comparing with the traditional linear quadratic regulator control method in the sense of robustness and tracking precision, we provide both the simulation and experimental results to demonstrate the effectiveness and advantages of the proposed approach

Model Predictive Control of a Two-Link Flexible Manipulator

Flexible manipulators are widely used because of the many advantages it provides like low weight, low power consumption leading to low overall cost. However due to the inherent structural flexibility they undergo vibrations and take time to come to the desired position once the actuating force is removed .The most crucial problems associated while designing a feedback control system for a flexible-link are that the system being non-minimum phase, under-actuated and non-collocated because of the physical separation between the actuators and the sensors. Moreover from mathematical point of view we can say that the dynamics of the rigid link robot can be derived assuming the total mass to be concentrated at centre of gravity of the body hence dynamics of the robot would result in terms of differential equations. On contrary flexible robot position is not constant and hence partial differential equation is used to represent the distributed nature of position which results in large number of equations increasing the computational effort. In this work a two link flexible manipulator is modelled using Assumed Mode Method considering two modes of vibration. Further fuzzy identification is also performed using T-S modelling approach which minimises the computation and takes into account higher modes of vibration. The input spaces consists of the torque inputs to the link and membership function of Gaussian form is chosen. The consequent parameters are calculated using Least Square Algorithm. For controlling the tip vibration a controller is designed using Model Predictive Control. The Model Predictive Control is an optimal control method in which the control law is calculated using the system output. MPC is widely used in the industry due to its better performance. The results are compared with another controller based on Linear Quadratic Regulator

Integral Resonant Control for vibration damping and precise tip-positioning of a single-link flexible manipulator

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