Control of the Inertia Wheel Pendulum by Bounded Torques

A control system for driving the inertia wheel pendulum to the upward position has been reported recently in the literature based on Interconnection and Damping Assignment Passivity–based Control. An important feature of this controller is that it swings up and balances the pendulum in the upward position without switching between two different controllers. This paper, enhances the control system by the practical capability of maintaining the control action (applied actuator torque) inside prescribed limits. The perfomance of the proposed controller is illustrated via simulations, which have been compared with those reported in the literature.