Small Motion Experiments on a Large Flexible Arm with Strain Feedback

Initial experiments on state space feedback control of a large flexible manipulator with a parallel linkage drive are described. A linear controller using joint angle and strain measurements was designed to minimize a quadratic performance index with a prescribed stability margin. It is based on a simplified model that accounts for the constraints of the parallel linkage kinematically rather than through constraint forces. The results show substantial improvement over a simple P.D.joint control.