Normal form approach in the motion planning of space robots: a case study

We examine applicability of normal forms of non-holonomic robotic systems to the problem of motion planning. A case study is analyzed of a planar, free-floating space robot consisting of a mobile base equipped with an on-board manipulator. It is assumed that during the robot’s motion its conserved angular momentum is zero. The motion planning problem is first solved at velocity level, and then torques at the joints are found as a solution of an inverse dynamics problem. A novelty of this paper lies in using the chained normal form of the robot’s dynamics and corresponding feedback transformations for motion planning at the velocity level. Two basic cases are studied, depending on the position of mounting point of the on-board manipulator. Comprehensive computational results are presented, and compared with the results provided by the Endogenous Configuration Space Approach. Advantages and limitations of applying normal forms for robot motion planning are discussed.

Experimental recommendations for estimating lower extremity loading based on joint and activity

Researchers often estimate joint loading using musculoskeletal models to solve the inverse dynamics problem. This approach is powerful because it can be done non-invasively, however, it relies on assumptions and physical measurements that are prone to measurement error. The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of these errors - specifically, segment mass and shear ground reaction force - have on analyzing joint loads during activities of daily living. We preformed traditional marker-based motion capture analysis on 8 healthy adults while they completed a battery of exercises on 6 degree of freedom force plates. We then scaled the mass of each segment as well as the shear component of the ground reaction force in 5% increments between 0 and 200% and iteratively performed inverse dynamics calculations, resulting in 1,681 mass-shear combinations per activity. We compared the peak joint moments of the ankle, knee, and hip at each mass-shear combination to the 100% mass and 100% shear combination to determine the percent error. We found that the ankle was most resistant to changes in both mass and shear and the knee was resistant to changes in mass while the hip was sensitive to changes in both mass and shear. These results can help guide researchers who are pursuing lower-cost or more convenient data collection setups.

Optimal lateral control for autonomous vehicle based on multi-stage handling inverse dynamics

In this paper, an optimal lateral control method for autonomous vehicle based on multi-stage handling inverse dynamics is proposed. By applying this method, the vehicle can be controlled to complete the corresponding driving task without tracking a certain ideal state variable trajectory. Firstly, a separate-stage handling inverse dynamics problem is described; and by setting the connections between each stage, a multi-stage handling inverse dynamics model is developed; then we convert the inverse dynamics problem into an optimal control problem (OCP). Secondly, an improved hp-adaptive Radau pseudospectral method ( hp-RPM) is applied to discrete the continuous OCP; and then the sequential quadratic programming is used to solve the problem. In addition, the results of contrast verification show that, when solving non-smooth problem, the improved hp-RPM has higher computational efficiency than hp-RPM. Finally, simulations under three typical cases and bench tests illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Assessment of Internal Loads in the Joints of the Lower Extremities During the Snatch in Young Weightlifters

The aim of this paper is to present the results of an assessment of internal loads in the joints of the lower limbs during the snatch performed by young weightlifters. A planar model of a weightlifter composed of 7 rigid segments (the lower trunk, thighs, lower legs and feet) connected by six hinge joints was used in the computations. The dynamic equations of the motion of the model were obtained using a projective technique. Kinematic data were recorded by a Vicon system with a sampling frequency of 200 Hz. The ground reactions were measured independently for the left and right limbs on two force platforms. The inverse dynamics problem was solved to assess the internal loads (the muscle forces and joint reactions) in the lower limbs. Relatively high differences in the reactions in the joints and muscle forces in the left and right lower extremities were identified. The obtained results also reveal that the snatch, a lift which tends to be geometrically symmetrical in the sagittal plane, is not necessarily characterized by symmetry of internal loads. Thus, this study has shown that a kinematics analysis of the lifter’s movement, which is commonly used to assess the technique of the snatch, is insufficient and should be supplemented with a dynamics analysis.

The dynamics of a mobile transport robot

The article presents the construction of a mobile transport robot which is a forklift model, used for laboratory testing of control methods for complex dynamic objects in changing operating conditions. The robot dynamics is calculated using Lagrange equations of the 2nd type with multipliers. The results of solving the inverse dynamics problem were presented using the robot’s trajectory which consists of stages of movement typical for transport tasks performed by forklift.

A Comprehensive Inverse Dynamics Problem of a Stewart Platform by Means of Lagrangian Formulation

In this paper, using the Lagrange’s method a comprehensive inverse dynamics problem of a 6-3 UPS Stewart platform is investigated. First, the inverse kinematics problem is solved and the Jacobian matrix is derived. Next, the full inverse dynamics problem of the robot, taking into account the mass of links and inertia, is investigated and its governing equations are derived. The correctness of the dynamics equations are verified in two ways, first, using the results of the virtual work method and second using the results of a commercial multi-body dynamics software. Because the dynamic calculation is time consuming, two simplifying assumptions are considered. First, the link is assumed to have a zero mass and next it is assumed as a point mass. Studying the former assumption is rather straightforward. However, more complex equations are needed and derived in the present paper for the latter assumption. Required actuator forces for the two assumptions are compared with the case where the mass and link inertial is fully considered. It is shown that the first simplifying assumption significantly affects the accuracy of the required joint torques.