Comparative study on control concepts of a robot manipulator with multiple-link/joint flexibilities

If one is dealing with active vibration suppression on a highly nonlinear flexible system, various techniques are needed. On the one hand a suitable dynamic model of the system is required. And on the other hand intelligent model based control concepts are necessary for active vibration damping. We deal with a basic model, where the flexibilities are approximated with linear springs and dampers, a so called lumped element model (LEM). For the control design we propose a control structure with two degrees of freedom (2DoF) for solving the tracking problem, based on the LEM. Such an approach allows designing the feedforward part independently of the feedback part. Hereby the feedforward control is based on the flatness approach, while for the feedback control several strategies are studied using acceleration- and gyrosensor-measurements. The contribution is completed with a validation by measurements from a very fast trajectory on an articulated robot with two flexible links and three elastic joints. (© 2012 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Various Feedforward Schemes and a Passivity Based Backstepping Feedback Control of an Elastic Robot

Lightweight constructions in industry plants lead to elastic deflections causing vibrations and a loss in tracking precision. In order to keep the tracking error for these elastic multibody systems low, the proposed control strategies are combinations of feedforward and feedback schemes. In this work various implemented strategies for computing a feedforward control are proposed and compared, which can be calculated with some simplifications from the mathematical model of the elastic multibody system. Some of these are considering the elastic deflections. The stabilization of the error dynamics is achieved by a simple PD-joint control or passivity based backstepping. In this algorithm the system is split into subsystems and for these subsystems simple control concepts can be applied. The feedback control law of the total system is obtained by means of backstepping theory, considering the internal energy flows in the system. Experimental results are presented to verify the control strategies. (© 2010 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Active damping control for an underactuated multibody system

Light-weight robots and manipulators stand out due to their very good weight-to-load ratio and a low energy consumption. Unfortunately, the light-weight design yields a lower stiffness, which results in undesired elastic deformations, especially during high-speed working motion. One way to limit these unwanted oscillations can be implemented with modifications of the command signals, e.g. by input shaping or pre-computed feed-forward control. However, a feedback control-concept has the ability to provide a fast compensation of elastic deformations due to high-speed working motions or in case of unwanted environment contact as well as in the presence of other external disturbances. In this contribution, an active damping control (ADC) for fast moving manipulators with significant structural elasticities is presented. This approach does not require additional actuators and it is suitable for a large variety of manipulators that exhibit structural vibrations. (© 2015 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

The Lightweight Robot ElRob: Interesting Aspects in Modeling and Control

The articulated robot ElRob, consisting of flexible links and joints, is considered in several publications. Recent developments are presented in this work. The overall goal of the research is to decrease the effects of structural elasticities in lightweight robots. For this purpose model-based control concepts are investigated and very accurate and efficient kinematic and dynamic models are necessary. The robot is split into groups of bodies, the so called subsystems, with separated describing velocities and coordinate systems. To obtain structured equations of motion the Projection Equation is used. The beams are modelled using the floating frame of reference formulation and a Ritz-approach. Because of its flexibility, the examined robot is an underactuated system leading to special difficulties. As an example is it not possible to compute the desired joint angles with respect to a reference path in task space for the flexible system (inverse kinematic problem). Different methods to solve this drawback and other problems resulting from flexibility are discussed with special focus on feed forward control and different feedback control concepts. The resulting end point error, the necessary control input and other interesting results for the laboratory experiment are presented and compared. (© 2011 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Three-Dimensional Maneuvering and Control of Flexible Robots

This paper develops a general approach to the three-dimensional maneuver and vibration control of a robot in the form of a chain of flexible links. The equations for the rigid-body maneuvering motions are derived by means of Lagrange equations in terms of quasi-coordinates and the equations for the elastic deformations by means of ordinary Lagrange equations. The equations of motion are derived for the full system simultaneously, using recursive equations to relate the motions of a given link to the motions of the preceding links in the chain. The maneuver is carried out by means of joint torques and the vibration is suppressed by means of point actuators dispersed throughout the links. The controls are designed by the Liapunov direct method. A numerical example demonstrates the theoretical developments.     

Active Vibration Damping and Model-Based Control for an Adaptronic Actuator

The static and dynamic flexibility of a machine tool is often the major limiting factor for the machining quality, especially if high processing speeds as well as high accuracies are desired. Particularly parallel kinematic machines, which have been developed for high processing speeds and accuracy and which often use lightweight structures, can suffer from severe problems with vibrations of system components and the loss of accuracy due to deformations of machine parts. Introducing so–called adaptronic or smart components into the machine tool structure opens up new and interesting possibilities to actively control the deformations and vibrations of flexible machine parts. They allow to specifically target such undesired properties and to significantly reduce or even eliminate their influence on the system performance. Concepts of active vibration damping and model–based control are presented here for such an adaptronic actuator implemented in a machine tool with parallel kinematics. (© 2008 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Dynamic model of a flying manipulator with two highly flexible links

Nonlinear dynamic model of a flying manipulator with two revolute joints and two highly flexible links is obtained using Hamilton’s principle. Flying base of the manipulator is a rigid body. Stress is treated three dimensionally in the isotropic linearly-elastic links, but the in-plane and out-of-plane warpings of the links’ cross-sections are neglected. Although the links’ cross-sections undergo negligible elastic orientation, their models are more accurate than a nonlinear 3D Euler–Bernoulli beam. Tension, compression, twisting and spatial deflections of each link are coupled to each other by some nonlinear terms including two new ones. In the issue of flying flexible-link manipulators new terminologies, namely forward/inverse kinetics instead of forward/inverse kinematics are suggested, since determination of position and orientation of the end-effector is coupled to the partial differential motion equations.     

Control of flexible joint robots using neural networks

The objective of this paper is to present a new controller designfor robot manipulators with elastic joints. The model, whichis used to represent the dynamics of elastic joint manipulators,is derived under two assumptions regarding the dynamic couplingbetween the actuators and the links. This model is useful forcases where the elasticity in the joints represents the dominantdynamic characteristic, and especially when it is of greatersignificance than gyroscopic interactions between the motorsand the links. The analysis of the problem is based on resultsin nonlinear control theory and particularly on the feedbacklinearization technique, and the controller design is achievedusing dynamic neural networks.     

Approximation design of optimal controllers for nonlinear systems with sinusoidal disturbances

This paper considers an infinite-time optimal damping control problem for a class of nonlinear systems with sinusoidal disturbances. A successive approximation approach (SAA) is applied to design feedforward and feedback optimal controllers. By using the SAA, the original optimal control problem is transformed into a sequence of nonhomogeneous linear two-point boundary value (TPBV) problems. The existence and uniqueness of the optimal control law are proved. The optimal control law is derived from a Riccati equation, matrix equations and an adjoint vector sequence, which consists of accurate linear feedforward and feedback terms and a nonlinear compensation term. And the nonlinear compensation term is the limit of the adjoint vector sequence. By using a finite term of the adjoint vector sequence, we can get an approximate optimal control law. A numerical example shows that the algorithm is effective and robust with respect to sinusoidal disturbances.     

Model Based Trajectory Control of an Overhead Travelling Crane

Until now, most papers concerning control of overhead travelling cranes have only focussed on position control of the translational degrees of freedom, see for example [1], [3], [4], and [5]. With more advanced robotic applications envisaged, however, there is a demand for both trajectory control in six degrees of freedom and active damping of the weakly damped load oscillations due to the rope suspension [2]. Hence, a model based trajectory control is presented for an overhead travelling crane that has been upgraded with an orientation unit providing three additional axes. Starting from a central multibody model, decentralised design models are derived for each crane axis. By this, couplings between the axes are identified and appear as disturbance inputs in these decentralised design models. Each decentralised axis controller consists of linear state feedback, feedforward control, and observer based disturbance compensation and is derived in symbolic form. This allows for an adaptation of the complete control structure employing the gain scheduling technique with respect to varying system parameters like rope length and load mass. Couplings between the crane axes are compensated by feedforward control, whereas the e.ects of nonlinear friction forces are counteracted by combination of feedforward control and disturbance estimation. Experimental results, taken at a 5 t ‐ bridge crane, show the bene.ts of the proposed control scheme as regards control performance and steady‐state accuracy.     

Control concepts for a parallel manipulator with flexible links

Light-weight robots are advantageous considering the low energy consumption and the low material cost. However, in light-weight structures significant oscillations can occur which make the control very challenging. Objective of this research is end-effector trajectory tracking of a parallel manipulator with flexible links. Hereby, only the manipulator's drives are used, and no additional actuation on the flexible bodies is considered. For accurate trajectory tracking, feedforward control of the manipulator is used based on inverse dynamics and servo-constraints, combined with feedback control of the drive positions. (© 2016 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

A Dynamic Model for a Hybrid Articulated Robot

The dynamic modeling of hybrid systems, consisting of flexible and rigid parts results in large partial differential equation systems (PDE). With the assumption of small deflections and the Ritz expansion the PDE can be approximated by an ordinary differential equation system (ODE) but the number of degrees of freedom is generally high. In this paper a hybrid articulated robot with 2 flexible links and 6 joints is under consideration. The joints are equipped with Harmonic Drive gears with high gear ratio but relative low stiffness. Therefore additionally degrees of freedom are introduced for the elastic deflection of the gears. The links are modeled with flexibility in two bending directions and in torsional sense. To be able to achieve structured equations the projection equation in subsystem representation is used. The projection equation is based on the momentum and the angular momentum equations of each single finite or infinitesimal body which are projected into the space of minimal coordinates and subsequently are summed up. Groups of bodies are collected to the so called subsystems with separated describing velocities. These subsystems are linked together with the kinematical chain. Because the robot is tree structured it is possible to obtain an explicit expression for the second derivatives of the minimal coordinates with a recursive scheme (O(n) efficiency). The robot is controlled with a feed forward controller and a linear PD joint controller. Simulation results and measured data are presented and compared. (© 2008 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Bogdanov–Takens bifurcation in an oscillator with negative damping and delayed position feedback

In this paper, Bogdanov–Takens bifurcation occurring in an oscillator with negative damping and delayed position feedback is investigated. By using center manifold reduction and normal form theory, dynamical classification near Bogdanov–Takens point can be completely figured out in terms of the second and third derivatives of delayed feedback term evaluated at the zero equilibrium. The obtained normal form and numerical simulations show that multistability, heteroclinic orbits, stable double homoclinic orbits, large amplitude periodic oscillation, and subcritical Hopf bifurcation occur in an oscillator with negative damping and delayed position feedback. The results indicate that negative damping and delayed position feedback can make the system produce more complicated dynamics.     

非线性梁结构的参数振动稳定性及其主动控制

采用压电材料研究了参数激励非线性梁结构的运动稳定性及其主动控制,通过速度反馈控制算法获得主动阻尼,利用Hamilton原理建立含阻尼的立方非线性运动方程,采用多尺度方法求解运动方程获得稳定性区域．通过数值算例,分析了控制增益、外激振力幅值等因素对稳定性区域和幅频曲线特性的影响．分析表明:控制增益增大,结构所能承受的轴向力也增大,在一定范围内结构的主动阻尼比也增加;随着控制增益的增大,响应幅值逐渐降低,但所需的控制电压存在峰值点．     

Dynamical Modeling and Flatness Based Control of a Belt Drive System

Belt driven systems are part of many industrial applications, like computerized numerical control (CNC) machines in particular cutting machines and 3D-printers. In this paper the dynamical modeling and a flatness based controller design for belt driven systems are proposed. Due to the special kinematics, the stiffness of the belt is nonlinear, leading to nonlinear equations of motion. By neglecting some minor dynamical effects, the resulting system simplifies to a differentially flat one. This allows to calculate nominal feed-forward control torques by using the flat output of the system. To stabilize the error dynamics, an additional PD control law is introduced. The proposed method is compared with a controller, where elastic deflections for the feed forward part are neglected and elastic deformations are compensated by modifying the desired trajectories in a model-based manner. The tracking performance of both methods is evaluated in certain simulations and experiments. (© 2014 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

具有强结构阻尼的非线性梁方程的整体动力学和控制

在本文中，我们考虑了高维具有强结构阻尼和全指数Ｂａｌａｋｒｉｓｈｎａｎ－Ｔａｙｌｏｒ阻尼的非线性固定边界可伸展的弹性梁方程，得到它的吸收集和平坦惯性流形的存在性．基于无控制方程的惯性流形的存在性，得到了相应的溢出问题的有限维反馈镇定控制．进而，此结果关于结构参数的不确定性是鲁棒的．     

Control of an elastic manipulator arm using load position and velocity feedback

The rotation of an elastic manipulator arm about one of its ends in the horizontal plane is investigated. A load is attached to the other end. The motion is effected by an electric motor. The control is constructed in the form of linear feedback on the position of the load, its velocity, and the angular velocity of the arm. The stability of the control process is investigated. It is shown that when there are no viscous damping forces proportional to the angular velocity of the arm, load position and velocity feedback leads to undamped oscillations of the system and the desired equilibrium position is not stabilized. Asymptotic stability domains in the feedback coefficient space when viscous damping is present are constructed. Comparison shows these domains to be smaller than corresponding domains for a completely rigid body.     

Recursive Methods in Modeling and Control of Modular Robotic Systems

This paper addresses the dynamical modeling and control of reconfigurable modular robots. The modular actuators (brushless DC motors with Harmonic Drive gears) for the robots under consideration are connected by rigid links. This way the robot can be assembled in different configurations by rearranging these components. For dynamical modeling the Projection Equation in Subsystem representation is used, taking advantage of its modular structure. Due to the lack of position sensors at the gearbox output shaft, deflections caused by the elasticities in the gears can not be compensated by the PD motor joint controller. Therefore, a correction of the motor trajectory is needed, which can be calculated as part of a flatness based feed-forward control using the exact model of the robot. With the recursive approach proposed in this paper the concept of reconfigurability is retained. For validation a redundant articulated robot arm with seven joints is regarded and results are presented. (© 2012 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

On a structural acoustic model with interface a Reissner-Mindlin plate or a Timoshenko beam

This paper is concerned with a model which describes the interaction of sound and elastic waves in a structural acoustic chamber in which one “wall” is flexible and flat. The model is new in the sense that the composite dynamics of the three-dimensional structure is described by the linearized equations for a gas defined on the interior of the chamber and the Reissner-Mindlin plate equations on the two-dimensional flat wall of the chamber, while, if a two-dimensional acoustic chamber is considered, the Timoshenko beam equations describe the deflections of the one-dimensional “wall.” With a view to achieving uniform stabilization of the structure linear feedback boundary damping is incorporated in the model, viz. in the wave equation for the gas and in the system of equations for the vibrations of the elastic medium. We present the uniform stability result for the case of a two-dimensional chamber and outline the method for the three-dimensional model which shows strong resemblance with the system of dynamic plane elasticity.     

Modelling and Control of a Hydraulic Actuated Large Scale Manipulator

This contribution deals with the modelling and control of an elastic manipulator. The arm is actuated by a hydraulic ram due to the significant weight. The overall goal is to achieve good tracking of the tip, as well as to reject disturbances, which act on the flexible arm. The controller design is based on two approaches. A flatness‐based feedforward control takes care of the tracking behaviour, and a passivity‐based feedback law stabilizes the trajectories and suppresses the elastic vibrations. (© 2004 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)