Position Feedback Control Research Articles

Position measurement and output feedback tracking method of hydraulic servo system based on pressure sensor

Instead of using position sensor, a position measurement and output feedback tracking method is proposed based on pressure sensor for a class of hydraulic servo system. First, the desired accumulator pressure is calculated and obtained in an open-loop way according to the desired cylinder position. Then, the position tracking task can be indirectly realized by achieving the pressure control. As a result, only one pressure sensor is required instead of position sensor, which is different from almost all the traditional output feedback position controller of hydraulic system. For the closed-loop pressure tracking, a desired compensation method and an auxiliary variable-based state observer are integrated to form the nonlinear controller. The theoretical and numerical simulation results demonstrate that the presented controller can attain satisfactory pressure tracking performance.

Pitching Stabilization Control for Super Large Ships Based on Double Nonlinear Positive Feedback under Rough Sea Conditions

Due to the rapid development of a global navigation satellite system and the rapid growth of ships, the traditional control algorithms are not suitable; hence, the longitudinal rocking phenomenon generated by external disturbances is more serious when a ship is sailing. This paper takes a mathematical model of the super large oil tanker “KVLCC2”’s longitudinal motion as the controlled plant, establishing a multi-input multi-output instability control system, using the root trajectory shaping method and a weighting matrix to ensure the stability of its transfer function’s mathematical model. An improved closed-loop gain-shaping algorithm is utilized to design a simple robust controller. And a dual nonlinear positive feedback control algorithm is added to the control system to further improve the controller’s pitching stabilization performance and reduce the controller’s output energy. In order to verify that the controller has a consistently strong robustness, simulation experiments are carried out by adding a level 6, 7 and 8 wind wave model and a perturbation link to the control system, respectively. The results show that when the value of the hysteresis constant is taken as 0.25, the output values of the heave displacement and the pitch angle are greatly reduced, and the longitudinal rocking phenomenon is significantly improved. The dual nonlinear positive feedback control algorithm enhances the ship’s pitching stabilization control capability and further reduces the controller’s output energy, which provides technical support for the smooth and efficient sailing of super large ships under changing sea conditions. Combined with a global navigation satellite system, this algorithm provides a new method for pitching stabilization control of super large ships.

The Impact of the Nonlinear Integral Positive Position Feedback (NIPPF) Controller on the Forced and Self-Excited Nonlinear Beam Flutter Phenomenon

This article presents a novel approach to impact regulation of nonlinear vibrational responses in a beam flutter system subjected to harmonic excitation. This study introduces the use of a Nonlinear Integral Positive Position Feedback (NIPPF) controller for this purpose. This technique models the system as a three-degree-of-freedom nonlinear system representing the beam flutter, coupled with a first-order and a second-order filter representing the NIPPF controller. By applying perturbation analysis to the linearized system model, the authors obtain analytical solutions for the autonomous system with the controller. This study aims to reduce vibration amplitudes in a nonlinear dynamic system, specifically when 1:1 internal resonance occurs. The Routh–Hurwitz criterion is utilized to evaluate the system’s stability. Furthermore, the frequency–response curves (FRCs) exhibit symmetry across a range of parameter values. The findings highlight that the effectiveness of vibration suppression is directly related to the product of the NIPPF control signal after comparing with different controllers. Numerical simulations, conducted using the fourth-order Runge–Kutta method, validate the analytical solutions and demonstrate the system’s amplitude response. The strong correlation between the analytical and numerical results highlights the accuracy and dependability of the proposed method.

Controlling the Generator in a Series of Hybrid Electric Vehicles Using a Positive Position Feedback Controller

Controlling the Generator in a Series of Hybrid Electric Vehicles Using a Positive Position Feedback Controller

Controlling the fold: proprioceptive feedback in a soft origami robot.

We demonstrate proprioceptive feedback control of a one degree of freedom soft, pneumatically actuated origami robot and an assembly of two robots into a two degree of freedom system. The base unit of the robot is a 41 mm long, 3-D printed Kresling-inspired structure with six sets of sidewall folds and one degree of freedom. Pneumatic actuation, provided by negative fluidic pressure, causes the robot to contract. Capacitive sensors patterned onto the robot provide position estimation and serve as input to a feedback controller. Using a finite element approach, the electrode shapes are optimized for sensitivity at larger (more obtuse) fold angles to improve control across the actuation range. We demonstrate stable position control through discrete-time proportional-integral-derivative (PID) control on a single unit Kresling robot via a series of static set points to 17 mm, dynamic set point stepping, and sinusoidal signal following, with error under 3 mm up to 10 mm contraction. We also demonstrate a two-unit Kresling robot with two degree of freedom extension and rotation control, which has error of 1.7 mm and 6.1°. This work contributes optimized capacitive electrode design and the demonstration of closed-loop feedback position control without visual tracking as an input. This approach to capacitance sensing and modeling constitutes a major step towards proprioceptive state estimation and feedback control in soft origami robotics.

Optimal attitude control for landing on asteroid with a flexible lander

The recently developed flexible lander offers a potential option for future asteroid landing missions due to its advantages in suppression of rebound and overturning. The strong nonlinear dynamics and control constraints of the flexible lander hinder the online implementation of optimal attitude feedback control. To generate the optimal attitude control rapidly, a constrained inhomogeneous approximating sequence of Riccati equations (CI-ASRE) method is proposed. The saturation function is firstly constructed to incorporate control magnitude constraints into dynamics so that the constraints can be analytically handled. Subsequently, to avoid singularity, a partial factorization strategy is proposed to convert the constrained dynamics into two parts, a pseudolinear term and an inhomogeneous term. This factorization enables the nonlinear problem to be expressed as the limit of a sequence of inhomogeneous linear quadratic problems while avoiding local linearization. At last, the analytical CI-ASRE is newly derived to iteratively solve these problems to rapidly obtain optimal feedback control. The computational simplicity and effectiveness of the CI-ASRE method overcome difficulties of optimal attitude control problems of the flexible lander associated with control constraints, strong nonlinearity, and online feedback control generation. The effectiveness of the proposed method for the flexible lander is verified using a landing scenario on asteroid 433 Eros.

Berthing proximity maneuvers and trajectory planning of a space manipulator via Kane’s formulation

On-orbit servicing is one of the most challenging tasks of the recent space era. Space Manipulator Systems (SMS) can represent viable technological solutions for several space operations, such as in-situ refueling, repairing of operating spacecraft, or debris grappling. Regardless of the specific task, SMS must approach the target object and then establish a physical connection with it using a single or more robotic arms. This work considers a space vehicle equipped with a pair of two-link robotic arms, with the intent of efficiently designing and simulating the overall spacecraft dynamics until contact takes place. The links that compose each arm are modeled as rigid bodies, assuming relatively slow dynamics. Instead, flexibility is introduced in the model of the rotary joints. The overall dynamics is investigated using Kane’s methodology, which is general, highly systematic, and joins the advantages of both the Newton/Euler and the Lagrange formulation. Both SMS and the target, assumed as noncooperative, are placed in low Earth orbit, in close proximity. Trajectory planning of the robotic arm is investigated, while considering the effect of the arm motion on the overall attitude dynamics. Precise attitude maneuvering is mandatory in order that grappling be successfully completed. To do this, a quaternion-based, globally stable attitude feedback law is designed, implemented, and tested. Actuation is demanded to an arrangement of control momentum gyroscopes. These devices are modeled with the inclusion of gyroscopic coupling effects, and are driven by means of suitable steering laws, for the purpose of pursuing the desired attitude control action. Accurate modeling of SMS, with also the inclusion of disturbances due to joint flexibility, in conjunction with the use of suitable feedback attitude control and steering laws for both the robotic arms and the actuation devices, allows obtaining the desired variables, i.e. (i) the motor torques (for steering both the joints and the attitude devices) and (ii) the constraint actions (forces and torques). A Monte Carlo analysis points out effectiveness of the control architecture proposed in this study in the challenging mission scenario of interest.

Wireless AC Motor Speed Control System

In this paper, we demonstrate the feasibility of controlling the speed of an induction motor using a wireless position feedback over an RF link and compare its performance under dynamic- and steady-state conditions with those obtained by using a wire-based position feedback control. An electronic circuit is coupled to the motor to provide the control-speed signal serially from distant microcontroller. A control panel is designed as an interface for the user to select the appropriate speed. This paper presents a high performance electric assisted bicycle system, where the rotor position is obtained by a position estimation technique using terminal quantities of the motor, which has a capability of starting from standstill. The components of the drive system include a wireless torque feedback, an application specific reference torque generation and torque control. The paper explains the implementation details of the position estimation technique that utilize a motor control DSP and provides real time test results to demonstrate its capabilities under real riding conditions including regenerative braking

Design and implementation of a precision levelling composite stage with active passive vibration isolation

The white-light-interference (WLI) three-dimensional topography fine detection has high requirements for the chip-loading stage on levelling and vibration isolation capacity, to ensure that the micro-meter-level structured chip is stably aligned with the WLI scanning head. To meet the high performance detection requirements, this paper designs a novel three-axis levelling and active-passive vibration isolation (LAPV) composite stage, in order to perform precision tilt levelling and wide-frequency-domain vibration isolation. The proposed LAPV stage integrates a modified quasi-zero-stiffness passive vibration isolation unit with an active actuation unit which consists of three voice coil motors (VCMs). It performs active-passive vibration isolation while ensuring a precision levelling. Considering the load bearing and motion vibration of the chip-loading stage, a miniaturized quasi-zero-stiffness mechanism having a specialized leaf spring structure is then designed to limit the vibration isolation operation to the vertical direction and coordinate the levelling motion of the tilt rotation direction, so as to establish a structural decoupling stage. Based on the dynamic and kinematic modelling analysis, a customized PID-Positive Position Feedback (PID-PPF) control scheme is implemented. Afterwards, an experimental verification is conducted. The obtained results show that the stage can achieve a precise levelling motion, reaching a levelling deviation of 33.2 μrad. Moreover, it also can achieve effective active-passive vibration isolation for various vibrations with different frequencies and amplitudes, and the vibration isolation rate can reach 90 %.

Feedback force and velocity control of an arm exoskeleton to assist user motion

The paper proposes a feedback force and velocity control of an arm exoskeleton to assist user motion. The original published control so-called feedback hybrid force and position control was based on the force and position control and was designed to assist user motion. This original control was successful at providing assist for the user’s arm. This article presents an improved control scheme called the feedback force and velocity control. The proposed control is designed to regulate the velocities of joints of the exoskeleton and the feedback forces on links to assist user motion. The design and optimization of the feedback force and velocity control are realized by the Balancing Composite Motion Optimization (BCMO). The numerical method is realized in the paper to show that the proposed control is better than the original control in terms of less oscillation and fast response.

Research on Electric Oil-Pneumatic Active Suspension Based on Fractional-Order PID Position Control.

In this study, an electric oil and gas actuator based on fractional-order PID position feedback control is proposed, through which the damping coefficient of the suspension system is adjusted to realize the active control of the suspension. An FOPID algorithm is used to control the motor's rotational angle to realize the damping adjustment of the suspension system. In this process, the road roughness is collected by the sensors as the criterion of damping adjustment, and the particle swarm algorithm is utilized to find the optimal objective function under different road surface slopes, to obtain the optimal cornering value. According to the mathematical and physical model of the suspension system, the simulation model and the corresponding test platform of this type of suspension system are built. The simulation and experimental results show that the simulation results of the fractional-order nonlinear suspension model are closer to the actual experimental values than those of the traditional linear suspension model, and the accuracy of each performance index is improved by more than 18.5%. The designed active suspension system optimizes the body acceleration, suspension dynamic deflection, and tire dynamic load to 89.8%, 56.7%, and 73.4% of the passive suspension, respectively. It is worth noting that, compared to traditional PID control circuits, the FOPID control circuit designed for motors has an improved control performance. This study provides an effective theoretical and empirical basis for the control and optimization of fractional-order nonlinear suspension systems.

Reinforcement learning-based attitude control for a barbell electric sail

The electric solar wind sail (E-sail) is a new propellant-free propulsion concept. The under-actuated and highly nonlinear features of E-sail systems pose a great challenge to their attitude controller design. Conventional control schemes may not be capable of dealing with this tough problem. To this end, a reinforcement learning (RL)-based control scheme, which can explore and obtain optimal policies in the absence of training datasets, is proposed for the attitude control of a barbell E-sail system. The barbell E-sail comprises two end satellites linked to an insulated confluence point through long and conductive tethers. The voltages of the two tethers can be individually modulated for attitude control. The system attitude dynamics is described using a nonsingular formulation. The control scheme has a two-stage design. In the first stage, an RL controller based on the Proximal Policy Optimization (PPO) algorithm is used to obtain an RL control strategy, which is emulated and updated by neural networks. In the second stage, the attitude feedback control is accomplished with low computation and energy consumption and fast convergence speed by performing a real-time mapping from the system state to the control output using the updated control strategy. Finally, the simulation results demonstrate that the proposed RL-based control scheme can effectively adjust the E-sail to the design attitude by regulating the tether voltage difference. The comparisons with the NMPC scheme also indicate that the developed control scheme can significantly reduce the computation time with control accuracy maintained.

Nonlinear vibrations and control of PFG-GR laminated composite cantilever rectangular variable cross-section plate with NPPF controller

This paper studies the nonlinear vibrations and control of the piezoelectric functionally graded graphene-reinforced laminated composite cantilever rectangular (PFG-GRLCCR) variable cross-section plate with the NPPF controller under the simultaneous resonant cases. The nonlinear dynamic governing equations of motion for the PFG-GRLCCR variable cross-section plate are obtained by using the extended Halpin-Tsai mode, linear constitutive equations of the piezoelectric materials, classical laminated plate theory, von Karman large deformation theory, and Hamilton principle. Considering Galerkin method, the nonlinear ordinary differential governing equations are obtained. The nonlinear positive position feedback (NPPF) controllers are designed according to the similarity principle. The multiple scale method is used to investigate the nonlinear vibration characteristics of the stable motion for the PFG-GRLCCR variable cross-section plate with the NPPF controllers. The amplitude-frequency response curves, force-amplitude response curves, time histories, phase portraits, and bifurcation diagrams are given to investigate the nonlinear dynamic characteristics of the PFG-GRLCCR variable cross-section plate with the NPPF controller. The results demonstrate that the NPPF controller can suppress the nonlinear vibrations of the structure well, and the effectiveness of the controllers is best when the NPPF controller has a similar nonlinear characteristic with the structure. The complex nonlinear vibration characteristics appear for the PFG-GRLCCR variable cross-section plate with the NPPF controller.

Design of anti-unwinding attitude coupling controller for flexible spacecraft using positive position feedback control

Flexible vibration has a great impact on flexible spacecraft attitude control, which will reduce the pointing accuracy of the spacecraft platform and bring severe challenges to the design of a high-precision attitude control system for flexible spacecraft. Aiming at the problem of attitude and vibration coupling control of flexible spacecraft, an anti-unwinding attitude coupling controller using the positive position feedback (PPF) control is proposed in this paper. The model compensation control term is constructed based on the prior information to improve the tracking performance. The proposed attitude coupling control method can effectively suppress the flexible vibration while achieving more accurate attitude control. The obtained closed-loop system under the proposed control scheme is asymptotically stable, which is proved by the Lyapunov stability theory. The numerical simulation illustrates that the proposed method can effectively improve the attitude control accuracy of the flexible spacecraft and is capable of large-angle attitude maneuver control because of its prominent performance in attitude tracking and its unwinding-free performance.

Quantifying the performance enhancement facilitated by fractional-order implementation of classical control strategies for nanopositioning

For most nanopositioning systems, maximizing positioning bandwidth to accurately track periodic and aperiodic reference signals is the primary performance goal. Closed-loop control schemes are employed to overcome the inherent performance limitations such as mechanical resonance, hysteresis and creep. Most reported control schemes are integer-order and combine both damping and tracking actions. In this work, fractional-order controllers from the positive position feedback family namely: the Fractional-Order Integral Resonant Control (FOIRC), the Fractional-Order Positive Position Feedback (FOPPF) controller, the Fractional-Order Positive Velocity and Position Feedback (FOPVPF) controller and the Fractional-Order Positive, Acceleration, Velocity and Position Feedback (FOPAVPF) controller are designed and analysed. Compared with their classical integer-order implementation, the fractional-order damping and tracking controllers furnish additional design (tuning) parameters, facilitating superior closed-loop bandwidth and tracking accuracy. Detailed simulated experiments are performed on recorded frequency-response data to validate the efficacy, stability and robustness of the proposed control schemes. The results show that the fractional-order versions deliver the best overall performance.

Adaptive Position Feedback Control of Parallel Robots in the Presence of Kinematics and Dynamics Uncertainties

Uncertainties in the kinematic and dynamic parameters of a parallel robot are unavoidable. The problem is more crucial in the cases where the manipulator interacts with the environment and when it is large–scale or deployable. Furthermore, precise measurement of the velocity of the end-effector is almost inaccessible in practice. This paper addresses the above shortcomings by designing of an adaptive trajectory tracking controller with merely position feedback of joint and task space variables. Simplicity of implementation, separation of adaptation laws of dynamic and kinematic parameters, and reduction of the number of adaptation laws such that in some cases, e.g., cable-driven robots, it is identically equivalent to the number of unknown parameters are some advantages of the proposed controller. The method’s efficiency is shown via implementation on a cable-driven parallel manipulator and an intraocular surgery robot. <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">Note to Practitioners</i> —In order to achieve a suitable response in parallel robots with traditional controllers, a precise knowledge of kinematic and dynamic parameters, together with accurate measurement of velocity, is required. In practice, these values are usually derived by robot calibration and identification. Since the system’s parameters may alter or depend on external factors such as temperature, these time-consuming methods should be implemented repeatedly while the robot is out of duty. Additionally, precise velocity measurement is a prohibitive task and requires expensive instruments. This article presents a controller to address the above shortcomings. By this means, a simple adaptive controller based on position feedback is designed such that via suitable estimation of kinematic and dynamic parameters, trajectory tracking is obtained without the need for accurate initial estimates of the parameters. The proposed method has a number of advantages, including separation of the adaptation laws of kinematic parameters and dynamic parameters, simple representation of the Jacobian matrix in regressor form, and there is no requirement for velocity feedback. Furthermore, a force distribution method is introduced for redundant robots. Hence, the proposed controller is an appropriate alternative to traditional controllers widely used in industries.

Integrated optimization design and motion control of multi-configuration unmanned metamorphic vehicle

An unmanned metamorphic vehicle is a new deformable robot that can transform its configuration according to different road conditions in order to realize wheeled driving or legged walking. This paper proposes a method of multi-objective integrated optimization design based on the motion control of unmanned metamorphic vehicle. The aim of this method is to improve the stability and reduce energy consumption of multi-configuration motion. The vehicle state configuration and the humanoid state walking performance were designed. The kinematic model of reconfiguration and humanoid walking was established from screw theory, while the Lagrangian dynamics model for reconfiguration and humanoid walking using analytical mechanics. Reconfiguration and gait planning were carried out for an unmanned metamorphic vehicle, and a sliding mode controller was designed for position feedback control of the zero moment point in order to improve the stability of reconfiguration and walking. In order to improve the kinematic performance of an unmanned metamorphic vehicle under multiconfiguration, the NSGA-II intelligent optimization algorithm was used to optimize the multi-objective integrated design of the structural parameters, posture parameters, and control parameters of the sliding mode controller of the system. The simulation and test results showed that the integrated design performs higher reconfiguration stability, lower energy consumption, and higher control quality than the sequential design and pre-optimization under the reconfiguration condition; in the vehicle state, the transient steering stability and the steady-state steering stability of the system during driving are significantly improved; in the humanoid state, the energy consumption of the striding process and the movement of the center of mass to the single-legged support region in the walking process is reduced and the walking stability is improved, thus is more conducive to walking.

On positive systems with multivariable positive control: Process stabilization

The process stabilization is tackled from the perspective of a family of positive systems with multivariable positive control. This framework is consistent because each of the n state variables and m control inputs in chemical processes is in R+. The aim is to provide multivariable positive feedback control schemes which take values in the hyperbox U∈R+m; while sufficient conditions are satisfied to ensure the stabilization process. Two approaches are discussed: the first is a sliding mode control based on hyperplanes intersecting a (n−m)-dimensional segment of the state space which comprises the equilibrium point; such scheme guarantees robust stability. The second is a continuous feedback stabilizer based on Lyapunov functions, which enhances convergence rate while stabilization is ensured. The process stabilization is shown with two examples: a heat exchanger and an isothermal continuous stirred tank reactor. Both examples illustrate the usefulness of the proposed framework of multivariable positive control.

Feedback hybrid force and position control of an upper limb exoskeleton to support human movement

In the paper, a feedback hybrid control including a force feedback control and a position control is proposed to control a four degree of freedom (4-dof) upper limb exoskeleton for supporting human movement at the shoulder, elbow and wrist joints. The novelty of the paper is that it has been able to control all the interaction forces at all links in the exoskeleton robot by using the proposed control. The desired interaction forces at the links and desired position are compared with the measured interaction forces and position, respectively. Then the torque at the shoulder, the torque elbow and the torque wrist joints are controlled to compensate the force error and the position error. The gains of the proposed controller are optimized by using the Balancing Composite Motion Optimization (BCMO). The simulation and control of the 4-dof upper limb exoskeleton using the proposed control is carried out in the paper to show that the interaction forces and the position of the exoskeleton track their desired values.

A weather optimal heading-based incremental feedback control for dynamic positioning of ships

In this brief, the weather optimal heading-based incremental feedback control algorithm is built for dynamic positioning (DP) of ships in the presence of model uncertainties and unknown environmental disturbances induced by wind, waves and currents. The proposed control algorithm has two parts, i.e., the weather optimal heading portion and the control portion. An improved ZPC-W approach with the deviation of the lateral control force is designed in order to enhance the convergence rate of the desired weather optimal heading and avoid overshoot as well. In addition, based on the iterative sliding mode function, a concise incremental feedback control scheme is designed with the pitch ratio of the thruster as the control input. It is measurable in the practical plant and has nothing to do with ship models with good stability and strong robustness. Lastly, simulation studies are performed to illustrate the performance and the superiorities of the proposed control algorithm.