Fuzzy control of robot manipulator with a flexible tool

In some tasks, a rigid robot manipulator handles a long, slender, and flexible tool, which usually has not been equipped with vibration measuring devices. This situation makes a different tool tip position control problem. In this paper, a new method will be presented for simultaneous tip position and vibration suppression control of a flexible tool on a rigid-link 3-DOF robot. This approach uses fuzzy logic rule-based controllers without using any sensors and actuators on the tool or a priori knowledge about the tool. Numerical simulation of robot and tool set has been accomplished and results support the fact that designed fuzzy controllers perform remarkably well in reducing vibrations and precision guidance of robot tool tip for tracking various trajectories. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.