Tracking Control of a Flexible Manipulator Using Piezoelectric Transducers

Abstract In this paper, a nonlinear control scheme is presented to achieve accurate tracking in a 2-DOF flexible manipulator. A secondary actuation mechanism using piezoelectric materials is added to the system for suppressing residual vibrations at the end point of the flexible link. A piezo-ceramic sensor is also used to obtain the modal states of the system. A partial feedback linearization technique based on output redefinition is utilized. A model for friction is obtained and included in the control law. Experimental results show that the control scheme results in smooth and precise motion of the flexible manipulator without exciting unwanted vibration modes.