On Active Vibration Absorption in Motion Control of a Quadrotor UAV

Conventional dynamic vibration absorbers are physical control devices designed to be coupled to flexible mechanical structures to be protected against undesirable forced vibrations. In this article, an approach to extend the capabilities of forced vibration suppression of the dynamic vibration absorbers into desired motion trajectory tracking control algorithms for a four-rotor unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is introduced. Nevertheless, additional physical control devices for mechanical vibration absorption are unnecessary in the proposed motion profile reference tracking control design perspective. A new dynamic control design approach for efficient tracking of desired motion profiles as well as for simultaneous active harmonic vibration absorption for a quadrotor helicopter is then proposed. In contrast to other control design methods, the presented motion tracking control scheme is based on the synthesis of multiple virtual (nonphysical) dynamic vibration absorbers. The mathematical structure of these physical mechanical devices, known as dynamic vibration absorbers, is properly exploited and extended for control synthesis for underactuated multiple-input multiple-output four-rotor nonlinear aerial dynamic systems. In this fashion, additional capabilities of active suppression of vibrating forces and torques can be achieved in specified motion directions on four-rotor helicopters. Moreover, since the dynamic vibration absorbers are designed to be virtual, these can be directly tuned for diverse operating conditions. In the present study, it is thus demonstrated that the mathematical structure of physical mechanical vibration absorbers can be extended for the design of active vibration control schemes for desired motion trajectory tracking tasks on four-rotor aerial vehicles subjected to adverse harmonic disturbances. The effectiveness of the presented novel design perspective of virtual dynamic vibration absorption schemes is proved by analytical and numerical results. Several operating case studies to stress the advantages to extend the undesirable vibration attenuation capabilities of the dynamic vibration absorbers into trajectory tracking control algorithms for nonlinear four-rotor helicopter systems are presented.

A novel model-based robust control design for collaborative robot joint module

In order to reduce the impact of load and system parameter changes on the dynamic performance of collaborative robot joint module, a novel robust control algorithm is proposed in this paper to solve the problem of dynamic control of collaborative robot joint module trajectory tracking. The controller is composed of two parts: one is a nominal control term designed based on the dynamical model, aiming to stabilize the nominal robot system; the other is a robust control term based on the Lyapunov method, aiming to eliminate the influence of uncertainty on tracking performance, where the uncertainties include nonlinear friction, parameter uncertainty, and external disturbances. The Lyapunov minimax method is adopted to prove that the system is uniformly bounded and uniformly ultimately bounded. We performed numerical simulation and experimental validation based on an actual collaborative robot joint module experimental platform and the rapid controller prototype cSPACE. The numerical simulation and experimental results show that the controller has excellent control performance for the collaborative robot joint module and provides more accurate trajectory tracking under the influence of uncertainties.

Parameter Adaptive Sliding Mode Trajectory Tracking Strategy with Initial Value Identification for the Swing in a Hydraulic Construction Robot

A novel trajectory tracking strategy is developed for a double actuated swing in a hydraulic construction robot. Specifically, a nonlinear hydraulic dynamics model of a double actuated swing is established, and a robust adaptive control strategy is designed to enhance the trajectory tracking performance. When an object is grabbed and unloaded, the inertia of a swing considerably changes, and the performance of the estimation algorithm is generally inadequate. Thus, it is necessary to establish an algorithm to identify the initial value of the moment of inertia of the object. To this end, this paper proposes a novel initial value identification algorithm based on a two-DOF robot gravity force identification method combined with computer vision information. The performance of the identification algorithm is enhanced. Simulations and experiments are performed to verify the effect of the novel control scheme.

Event Visualization and Trajectory Tracking of the Load Carried by Rotary Crane

Tracking the trajectory of the load carried by the rotary crane is an important problem that allows reducing the possibility of its damage by hitting an obstacle in its working area. On the basis of the trajectory, it is also possible to determine an appropriate control system that would allow for the safe transport of the load. This work concerns research on the load motion carried by a rotary crane. For this purpose, the laboratory crane model was designed in Solidworks software, and numerical simulations were made using the Motion module. The developed laboratory model is a scaled equivalent of the real Liebherr LTM 1020 object. The crane control included two movements: changing the inclination angle of the crane’s boom and rotation of the jib with the platform. On the basis of the developed model, a test stand was built, which allowed for the verification of numerical results. Event visualization and trajectory tracking were made using a dynamic vision sensor (DVS) and the Tracker program. Based on the obtained experimental results, the developed numerical model was verified. The proposed trajectory tracking method can be used to develop a control system to prevent collisions during the crane’s duty cycle.

Experimental Validation of a Model-Free High-Order Sliding Mode Controller with Finite-Time Convergence for Trajectory Tracking of Autonomous Underwater Vehicles

Several control strategies have been proposed for the trajectory tracking problem of Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUV). Most of them are model-based, hence, detailed knowledge of the parameters of the robot is needed. Few works consider a finite-time convergence in their controllers, which offers strong robustness and fast convergence compared with asymptotic or exponential solutions. Those finite-time controllers do not permit the users to predefine the convergence time, which can be useful for a more efficient use of the robot’s energy. This paper presents the experimental validation of a model-free high-order Sliding Mode Controller (SMC) with finite-time convergence in a predefined time. The convergence time is introduced by the simple change of a time-base parameter. The aim is to validate the controller so it can be implemented for cooperative missions where the communication is limited or null. Results showed that the proposed controller can drive the robot to the desired depth and heading trajectories in the predefined time for all the cases, reducing the error by up to 75% and 41% when compared with a PID and the same SMC with asymptotic convergence. The energy consumption was reduced 35% and 50% when compared with those same controllers.

Backstepping sliding mode control strategy of non-contact 6-DOF Lorentz force platform

With the development of aerospace technology, more and more scientific activities are carried out in the universe. Due to the microgravity environment of space, the control of the 6-DOF platform is different from those on the earth. First, a virtual prototype model of the 6-DOF non-contact platform was built in ADAMS. The dynamics model was developed based on the Newton–Euler method. Then, the 6-DOF backstepping sliding mode controller and disturbance observer were designed in MATLAB/Simulink. Finally, by combining the virtual prototype model in ADAMS and the control system in MATLAB, the co-simulation model was proposed. According to the simulation results, the 6-DOF backstepping sliding mode controller can well complete the positioning, 3D trajectory tracking, and vibration isolation tasks of non-contact 6-DOF platform. Quantitatively, the spatial error of backstepping sliding mode controller’s 3D trajectory tracking is only 50% of the ordinary sliding mode control and it is 20% of the nonlinear propotional-derivative-integral.

ENHANCEMENT OF STABILITY ON AUTONOMOUS WAYPOINT MISSION OF QUADROTOR USING LQR INTEGRATOR CONTROL

The ability of the quadrotor in the waypoint trajectory tracking becomes an essential requirement in the completion of various missions nowadays. However, the magnitude of steady-state errors and multiple overshoots due to environmental disturbances leads to motion instability. These conditions make the quadrotor experience a shift and even change direction from the reference path. As a result, to minimize steady-state error and multiple overshoots, this study employs a Linear Quadratic Regulator control method with the addition of an Integrator. Comparisons between LQR without Integrator and LQR with Integrator were performed. They were implemented on a quadrotor controller to track square and zig-zag waypoint patterns. From experimental results, LQR without Integrator produce of 2 meters steady-state error and -1.04 meters undershoot average with an accuracy of 64.84 % for square pattern, along 3.19 meters steady-state error, and -1.12 meters undershoot average with an accuracy of 46.73 % for a zig-zag way. The LQR method with integrator produce of 1.06 meters steady-state error with accuracy 94.96 % without multiple-overshoot for square pattern, the 1.06 meters steady-state error, and -0.18 meters undershoot average with an accuracy of 86.49 % for the zig-zag way. The results show that the LQR control method with Integrator can minimize and improve steady-state error and multiple overshoots in quadrotor flight. The condition makes the quadrotor able to flying path waypoints with the correct system specification. ABSTRAK: Kemampuan quadrotor dalam pengesanan lintasan waypoint menjadi syarat penting dalam menyelesaikan pelbagai misi pada masa kini. Walau bagaimanapun, besarnya ralat keadaan mantap dan banyak kelebihan kerana gangguan persekitaran menyebabkan ketidakstabilan pergerakan. Keadaan ini menjadikan quadrotor mengalami pergeseran dan bahkan mengubah arah dari jalur rujukan. Oleh itu, kajian ini menggunakan kaedah kawalan Linear Quadratic Regulator dengan penambahan integrator dalam meminimumkan ralat keadaan mantap dan banyak kelebihan. Perbandingan antara LQR tanpa Integrator dan LQR dengan Integrator dilakukan. Mereka dilaksanakan pada pengawal quadrotor untuk mengesan corak titik jalan persegi dan zig-zag. Dari hasil eksperimen, LQR tanpa Integrator menghasilkan ralat keadaan mantap 2 meter dan -1.04 meter rata-rata undur tembak dengan ketepatan 64.84% untuk corak persegi, sepanjang ralat keadaan tetap 3.19 meter, dan -1.12 meter rata-rata undur bawah dengan ketepatan 46.73 % untuk cara zig-zag. Kaedah LQR dengan integrator menghasilkan ralat keadaan mantap 1.06 meter dengan ketepatan 94.96% tanpa tembakan berlebihan untuk corak segi empat sama, ralat keadaan mantap 1.06 meter, dan rata-rata undur tembak -0.18 meter dengan ketepatan 86.49% untuk zig-zag cara. Hasilnya menunjukkan bahawa kaedah kawalan LQR dengan Integrator dapat meminimumkan dan memperbaiki ralat keadaan mantap dan banyak overhoot dalam penerbangan quadrotor. Keadaan tersebut menjadikan quadrotor dapat terbang ke titik jalan dengan spesifikasi sistem yang betul.