環境インタラクションのための二慣性系のバックフォワードドライバブルねじれトルク制御

国立大学法人長岡技術科学大

MODELLING AND CONTROL OF A TWO-LINK RIGID-FLEXIBLE MANIPULATOR

The literature lacks data on the reliability of 3D models created by Autodesk Inventor software and imported to MATLAB Simulink software in comparison to mathematically generated models. In this contribution, a two-link rigid-flexible manipulator modelled in two different methods was demonstrated, one of which is using Lagrange equations and Finite Element Method to generate a mathematical model of the manipulator, and the other is creating a 3D model with the aid of Autodesk Inventor then import to MATLAB Simulink, both models were subsequently controlled by three types of controllers, conventional PID controller, LQR controller, and LQG controller. The research demonstrated the performance of the two models with response to the three types of controllers. Achieved results have proven that the Autodesk Inventor is considered a reliable tool for modelling mechanical systems. Results have also confirmed that modern controllers, i.e., LQR and LQG controllers perform much better than conventional PID controllers with regards to the manipulator movement. The implementation of Autodesk Inventor along with MATLAB Simulink indicates that the Autodesk Inventor can be considered as an instrumental tool for designers and engineers. The results enable future developments in the frontier area of robotics and mechanical systems, where sophisticated models could be generated by Autodesk Inventor instead of being modelled mathematically which will benefit engineers and designers by saving time and effort consumed in modelling using mathematical equations, and by reducing the potential errors associated with such modelling technique

From plain visualisation to vibration sensing: using a camera to control the flexibilities in the ITER remote handling equipment

Thermonuclear fusion is expected to play a key role in the energy market during the second half of this century, reaching 20% of the electricity generation by 2100. For many years, fusion scientists and engineers have been developing the various technologies required to build nuclear power stations allowing a sustained fusion reaction. To the maximum possible extent, maintenance operations in fusion reactors are performed manually by qualified workers in full accordance with the "as low as reasonably achievable" (ALARA) principle. However, the option of hands-on maintenance becomes impractical, difficult or simply impossible in many circumstances, such as high biological dose rates. In this case, maintenance tasks will be performed with remote handling (RH) techniques. The International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor ITER, to be commissioned in southern France around 2025, will be the first fusion experiment producing more power from fusion than energy necessary to heat the plasma. Its main objective is “to demonstrate the scientific and technological feasibility of fusion power for peaceful purposes”. However ITER represents an unequalled challenge in terms of RH system design, since it will be much more demanding and complex than any other remote maintenance system previously designed. The introduction of man-in-the-loop capabilities in the robotic systems designed for ITER maintenance would provide useful assistance during inspection, i.e. by providing the operator the ability and flexibility to locate and examine unplanned targets, or during handling operations, i.e. by making peg-in-hole tasks easier. Unfortunately, most transmission technologies able to withstand the very specific and extreme environmental conditions existing inside a fusion reactor are based on gears, screws, cables and chains, which make the whole system very flexible and subject to vibrations. This effect is further increased as structural parts of the maintenance equipment are generally lightweight and slender structures due to the size and the arduous accessibility to the reactor. Several methodologies aiming at avoiding or limiting the effects of vibrations on RH system performance have been investigated over the past decade. These methods often rely on the use of vibration sensors such as accelerometers. However, reviewing market shows that there is no commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) accelerometer that meets the very specific requirements for vibration sensing in the ITER in-vessel RH equipment (resilience to high total integrated dose, high sensitivity). The customisation and qualification of existing products or investigation of new concepts might be considered. However, these options would inevitably involve high development costs. While an extensive amount of work has been published on the modelling and control of flexible manipulators in the 1980s and 1990s, the possibility to use vision devices to stabilise an oscillating robotic arm has only been considered very recently and this promising solution has not been discussed at length. In parallel, recent developments on machine vision systems in nuclear environment have been very encouraging. Although they do not deal directly with vibration sensing, they open up new prospects in the use of radiation tolerant cameras. This thesis aims to demonstrate that vibration control of remote maintenance equipment operating in harsh environments such as ITER can be achieved without considering any extra sensor besides the embarked rad-hardened cameras that will inevitably be used to provide real-time visual feedback to the operators. In other words it is proposed to consider the radiation-tolerant vision devices as full sensors providing quantitative data that can be processed by the control scheme and not only as plain video feedback providing qualitative information. The work conducted within the present thesis has confirmed that methods based on the tracking of visual features from an unknown environment are effective candidates for the real-time control of vibrations. Oscillations induced at the end effector are estimated by exploiting a simple physical model of the manipulator. Using a camera mounted in an eye-in-hand configuration, this model is adjusted using direct measurement of the tip oscillations with respect to the static environment. The primary contribution of this thesis consists of implementing a markerless tracker to determine the velocity of a tip-mounted camera in an untrimmed environment in order to stabilise an oscillating long-reach robotic arm. In particular, this method implies modifying an existing online interaction matrix estimator to make it self-adjustable and deriving a multimode dynamic model of a flexible rotating beam. An innovative vision-based method using sinusoidal regression to sense low-frequency oscillations is also proposed and tested. Finally, the problem of online estimation of the image capture delay for visual servoing applications with high dynamics is addressed and an original approach based on the concept of cross-correlation is presented and experimentally validated

Non-Linear Robust Observers For Systems With Non-Collocated Sensors And Actuators

Challenges in controlling highly nonlinear systems are not limited to the development of sophisticated control algorithms that are tolerant to significant modeling imprecision and external disturbances. Additional challenges stem from the implementation of the control algorithm such as the availability of the state variables needed for the computation of the control signals, and the adverse effects induced by non-collocated sensors and actuators. The present work investigates the adverse effects of non-collocated sensors and actuators on the phase characteristics of flexible structures and the ensuing implications on the performance of structural controllers. Two closed-loop systems are considered and their phase angle contours have been generated as functions of the normalized sensor location and the excitation frequency. These contours were instrumental in the development of remedial actions for rendering structural controllers immune to the detrimental effects of non-collocated sensors and actuators. Moreover, the current work has focused on providing experimental validation for the robust performances of a self-tuning observer and a sliding mode observer. The observers are designed based on the variable structure systems theory and the self-tuning fuzzy logic scheme. Their robustness and self-tuning characteristics allow one to use an imprecise model of the system and eliminate the need for the extensive tuning associated with a fixed rule-based expert fuzzy inference system. The first phase of the experimental work was conducted in a controlled environment on a flexible spherical robotic manipulator whose natural frequencies are configuration-dependent. Both controllers have yielded accurate estimates of the required state variables in spite of significant modeling imprecision. The observers were also tested under a completely uncontrolled environment, which involves a 16-ft boat operating in open-water under different sea states. Such an experimental work necessitates the development of a supervisory control algorithm to perform PTP tasks, prescribed throttle arm and steering tasks, surge speed and heading tracking tasks, or recovery maneuvers. This system has been implemented herein to perform prescribed throttle arm and steering control tasks based on estimated rather than measured state variables. These experiments served to validate the observers in a completely uncontrolled environment and proved their viability as reliable techniques for providing accurate estimates for the required state variables

Stability-Oriented Dynamics and Control of Complex Rigid-Flexible Mechanical Systems Using the Example of a Bucket-Wheel Excavator

Der Schwerpunkt dieser Arbeit liegt auf der Modellbildung und der Regelung von Schaufelradbaggerauslegern. Die Schaufelradbagger stellen eine besondere Art komplexer Maschinensysteme dar, die im Braunkohletagebau eingesetzt werden. Der Schaufelradausleger ist hierbei als dreidimensionaler elastischer Balken nach der EULER-BERNOULLI Balken-Hypothese modelliert. Durch den Erhalt von Termen höherer Ordnung in den nichtlinearen Relationen zwischen Verschiebung und Verzerrungen, sind Kopplungseffekte höherer Ordnung der gesamtheitlichen Verschiebung und der flexiblen Deformation mitberücksichtigt. Bei der Modellierung der geometrischen Nichtlinearität des dreidimensionalen elastischen Balkens wurde weiterhin die zusätzliche Elastizität von Hebekabeln miteinbezogen. Komplexere Bewegungen, speziell die geführte Bewegung in Kombination mit Grabkräften wurden aufgezeigt und diskutiert. Die Elastizität des Auslegers wurde in Bezug auf die Interaktion zwischen Schneidewerkzeug (Baggerschaufel) und Oberflächenmaterial berücksichtigt. Einflüsse von Kopplungen höherer Ordnung zwischen flexiblen Deformationen, Förderseilen und Grabgegenkräften auf das dynamische Verhalten des Schaufelradauslegers werden mithilfe intensiver Simulationsstudien dargestellt. Dynamische Phänomene, die sich aus den geometrischen und dynamischen Kopplungen höherer Ordnung ergeben, die der geführten Bewegung und den Grabgegenkräften ausgesetzt sind, wurden im Detail analysiert. Die destabilisierenden Einflüsse, die zu großen Deformationen des Systems führen, beruhen auf den oben genannten Kopplungen, werden in den Simulationsergebnissen gezeigt. Das entwickelte Model sowie die damit verbundene Abbildung des dynamischen Systems liefert somit eine gute Basis für weitere Untersuchungen der Systemstabilität in Zusammenhang mit den Grabgegenkräften. Das nichtlineare dynamische System des Schaufelradauslegers wird durch ein erweitertes lineares System mit Nichtlinearitäten eines passenden fiktiven Modells für die Ansteuerungsanalyse und Designzwecke approximiert. Ein PI-Beobachter wird basierend auf diesem erweiterten linearen System eingesetzt, der alle Zustände des Systems schätzen und das Zeitverhalten der Nichtlinearitten rekonstruiert. Von diesem Standpunkt aus ist die beobachtergestützte PI-Zustandsregelung in Kombination mit einer Störungs- Kompensationsregelung realisiert. Drei Störungs-Kompensationsregelungsansätze bestehen aus dem statischen Ansatz, dem Davison Ansatz und dem erweiterten Ansatz nach dem Davison wurden zur Kompensation der Nichtlinearitäten diskutiert. Anhand von Simulationsbeispielen wird die effiziente Unterdrückung von Vibrationen und der Systemstabilisierung des Schaufelradbaggers während des Grabprozesses gezeigt. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass der Davison Ansatz und der erweiterte Ansatz nach dem Davison die dynamische Verbesserung des Schwingungsverhaltens sowie Stabilisierung des Schaufelradbaggers gewähren können. Demnach kann die Produktivität und somit die Ertrag des Schaufelradbaggers erhöht werden.The focus of this thesis is the modeling and control of the boom of the Bucket-Wheel excavator, which represents a specific type of complex machine systems used in mining technology. Hereby the Bucket-Wheel boom is modeled as the three-dimensional flexible beam using the Euler-Bernoulli beam theory. Retaining higher-order terms in the nonlinear strain-displacement relationship, higher-order coupling effects between the overall motion and flexible deformations are considered in the modeling. Furthermore, the nonlinear modeling of the three-dimensional elastic boom is also considered with the additional elasticity of hoisting cables. More complex motions, especially the guided motion in combination with digging resistance forces, are mentioned and discussed. So far, the elasticity of the boom along with the interaction between the cutting head and the face material is taken into account. The effects of higher-order couplings between flexible deformations, hoisting cables, and digging resistance forces on dynamical responses of the Bucket-Wheel boom are illustrated by intensive simulation studies. Dynamic phenomena resulting from higher-order geometrical and dynamical couplings undergoing the guided motion and digging resistance forces are therefore analyzed in detail. The destabilizing effects leading to large deformations (may be critical) of the system due to the above mentioned couplings are shown in simulation results. Thus, the developed model as well as the related dynamic system representation gives a good base for the advanced study of the stability of the system in combination with the digging resistance forces. For control analysis and design purposes, the nonlinear dynamical system of the Bucket-Wheel boom is approximated by the extended linear system with nonlinearities modeled by a suitable fictitious model. Based on this extended linear system, a high-gain PI-Observer is applied to estimate all states of the system and to reconstruct the time behavior of the nonlinearities. From this point of view, a high-gain PI-Observer-based state feedback control is realized in combination with disturbance rejection control approaches. Three disturbance rejection control approaches including the static disturbance rejection control approach, Davison approach, and the extended approach of Davison are discussed for compensating nonlinearities. Simulation examples are included to illustrate the efficient suppression of vibrations as well as the stabilization of the system during the digging process of the Bucket-Wheel Excavator. The results show that the static disturbance rejection control approach cannot stabilize the system, while Davison approach and the extended approach of Davison can stabilize successfully the system with the suitable dynamic feedback terms. Consequently, application of these approaches can improve operating ranges of the Bucket-Wheel excavator. Therefore, an exploitation productivity of the Bucket-Wheel excavators can be increased

Robot Manipulators

Robot manipulators are developing more in the direction of industrial robots than of human workers. Recently, the applications of robot manipulators are spreading their focus, for example Da Vinci as a medical robot, ASIMO as a humanoid robot and so on. There are many research topics within the field of robot manipulators, e.g. motion planning, cooperation with a human, and fusion with external sensors like vision, haptic and force, etc. Moreover, these include both technical problems in the industry and theoretical problems in the academic fields. This book is a collection of papers presenting the latest research issues from around the world

Controlled motion in an elastic world. Research project: Manipulation strategies for massive space payloads

The flexibility of the drives and structures of controlled motion systems are presented as an obstacle to be overcome in the design of high performance motion systems, particularly manipulator arms. The task and the measure of performance to be applied determine the technology appropriate to overcome this obstacle. Included in the technologies proposed are control algorithms (feedback and feed forward), passive damping enhancement, operational strategies, and structural design. Modeling of the distributed, nonlinear system is difficult, and alternative approaches are discussed. The author presents personal perspectives on the history, status, and future directions in this area

NASA Workshop on Distributed Parameter Modeling and Control of Flexible Aerospace Systems

Although significant advances have been made in modeling and controlling flexible systems, there remains a need for improvements in model accuracy and in control performance. The finite element models of flexible systems are unduly complex and are almost intractable to optimum parameter estimation for refinement using experimental data. Distributed parameter or continuum modeling offers some advantages and some challenges in both modeling and control. Continuum models often result in a significantly reduced number of model parameters, thereby enabling optimum parameter estimation. The dynamic equations of motion of continuum models provide the advantage of allowing the embedding of the control system dynamics, thus forming a complete set of system dynamics. There is also increased insight provided by the continuum model approach