Adaptive and Nonlinear Control of Robotics

A special issue of Robotics (ISSN 2218-6581). This special issue belongs to the section "Sensors and Control in Robotics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 28 February 2025 | Viewed by 5343

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and the NanoScience Technology Center, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL 32816, USA
Interests: assistive robotics; human–robot interaction; nonlinear control theory and applications
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Mathematically speaking, robot dynamics are represented by systems of highly coupled nonlinear differential equations. While these dynamics can be linearized under restrictive assumptions of exact or partial model knowledge, most practical robot control designs end up with nonlinear closed-loop dynamics. Adaptive control, which includes neural network/learning-based control designs, particularly necessitates the application of nonlinear control systems analysis techniques. In this Special Issue, we would like to focus on emerging techniques in the adaptive and nonlinear control of robotics, as they apply to novel control problems and state-of-the-art robot configurations/designs.               

Prof. Dr. Aman Behal
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • nonlinear control
  • direct adaptive control
  • indirect adaptive control
  • Lyapunov-based control
  • output feedback control
  • partial-state feedback control
  • full-state feedback control
  • learning-based control

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

31 pages, 21379 KiB  
Article
Quantum-Inspired Sliding-Mode Control to Enhance the Precision and Energy Efficiency of an Articulated Industrial Robotic Arm
by Mehdi Fazilat and Nadjet Zioui
Robotics 2025, 14(2), 14; https://doi.org/10.3390/robotics14020014 - 29 Jan 2025
Viewed by 442
Abstract
Maintaining precise and robust control in robotic systems, particularly those with nonlinear dynamics and external disturbances, is a significant challenge in robotics. Sliding-mode control (SMC) is a widely used technique to tackle these issues; however, it is plagued by chattering and computational complexity, [...] Read more.
Maintaining precise and robust control in robotic systems, particularly those with nonlinear dynamics and external disturbances, is a significant challenge in robotics. Sliding-mode control (SMC) is a widely used technique to tackle these issues; however, it is plagued by chattering and computational complexity, which limit its effectiveness in high-precision environments. This study aims to develop and assess a quantum-inspired sliding-mode control (QSMC) strategy to enhance the SMC’s robustness, precision, and computational efficiency, specifically in controlling a six-jointed articulated robotic arm. The methodology involves creating a comprehensive kinematic and dynamic model of the robot, followed by implementing both classic SMC and the proposed Q-SMC in a comparative way. The simulation results confirm that the Q-SMC method outperforms the classic SMC, particularly in reducing chattering, improving tracking accuracy, and decreasing energy consumption by approximately 3.79%. These findings suggest that the Q-SMC technique provides a promising alternative to classical control methods, with potential applications in tasks requiring high precision and efficient robotic manipulations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Adaptive and Nonlinear Control of Robotics)
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15 pages, 1709 KiB  
Article
An Aircraft-Manipulator System for Virtual Flight Testing of Longitudinal Flight Dynamics
by Ademayowa A. Ishola, James F. Whidborne and Gilbert Tang
Robotics 2024, 13(12), 179; https://doi.org/10.3390/robotics13120179 - 15 Dec 2024
Viewed by 817
Abstract
A virtual flight test is the process of flying an aircraft model inside a wind tunnel in a manner that replicates free-flight. In this paper, a 3-DOF aircraft-manipulator system is proposed that can be used for longitudinal dynamics virtual flight tests. The system [...] Read more.
A virtual flight test is the process of flying an aircraft model inside a wind tunnel in a manner that replicates free-flight. In this paper, a 3-DOF aircraft-manipulator system is proposed that can be used for longitudinal dynamics virtual flight tests. The system consists of a two rotational degrees-of-freedom manipulator arm with an aircraft wind tunnel model attached to the third joint. This aircraft-manipulator system is constrained to operate for only the longitudinal motion of the aircraft. Thus, the manipulator controls the surge and heave of the aircraft whilst the pitch is free to rotate and can be actively controlled by means of an all-moving tailplane of the aircraft if required. In this initial study, a flight dynamics model of the aircraft is used to obtain dynamic response trajectories of the aircraft in free-flight. A model of the coupled aircraft-manipulator system developed using the Euler method is presented, and PID controllers are used to control the manipulator so that the aircraft follows the free-flight trajectory (with respect to the air). The inverse kinematics are used to produce the reference joint angles for the manipulator. The system is simulated in MATLAB/Simulink and a virtual flight test trajectory is compared with a free-flight test trajectory, demonstrating the potential of the proposed system for virtual flight tests. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Adaptive and Nonlinear Control of Robotics)
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24 pages, 2730 KiB  
Article
Robust and Adaptive Control of a Soft Continuum Manipulator for Minimally Invasive Surgery
by Liujia Wang, Kaiwen Chen and Enrico Franco
Robotics 2024, 13(11), 162; https://doi.org/10.3390/robotics13110162 - 7 Nov 2024
Viewed by 1105
Abstract
This article investigates the model-based control in configurations space of a soft continuum manipulator for minimally invasive surgery. The main control challenges for these types of systems are the presence of model uncertainties and nonlinearities. To this end, a sliding-mode controller, a Lyapunov [...] Read more.
This article investigates the model-based control in configurations space of a soft continuum manipulator for minimally invasive surgery. The main control challenges for these types of systems are the presence of model uncertainties and nonlinearities. To this end, a sliding-mode controller, a Lyapunov redesign controller, and an adaptive controller have been designed and compared by means of simulations and experiments on a prototype. The results indicate that the adaptive controller yields better accuracy but a slower transient. Conversely, the sliding-mode controller and Lyapunov redesign yield a faster response but can result in chattering or steady-state errors. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Adaptive and Nonlinear Control of Robotics)
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18 pages, 3454 KiB  
Article
Prescribed Time Interception of Moving Objects’ Trajectories Using Robot Manipulators
by Juan Alejandro Flores-Campos, Christopher René Torres-San-Miguel, Juan Carlos Paredes-Rojas and Adolfo Perrusquía
Robotics 2024, 13(10), 145; https://doi.org/10.3390/robotics13100145 - 27 Sep 2024
Viewed by 832
Abstract
Trajectory interception is a critical synchronization element in the transportation and manufacturing sectors using robotic platforms. This is usually performed by matching the position and velocity of a target object with the position and velocity of the robot interceptor. However, the synchronization task [...] Read more.
Trajectory interception is a critical synchronization element in the transportation and manufacturing sectors using robotic platforms. This is usually performed by matching the position and velocity of a target object with the position and velocity of the robot interceptor. However, the synchronization task is exasperated by (i) the proper gain tuning of the controller, (ii) the dynamic response of the robotic platform, (iii) the velocity constraints in the actuators, and (iv) the trajectory profile exhibited by the moving object. This means that the interception time is not controlled, which is critical for energy optimization, resources, and production. This paper proposes a prescribed time trajectory interception algorithm for robot manipulators. The approach uses the finite-time convergence properties of sliding mode control combined with a terminal attractor based on a time base generator. The combined approach guarantees trajectory interception in a prescribed time with robust properties. Simulation studies are conducted using the first three degrees of freedom (DOFs) of a RV-M1 robot under single- and multi-object interception tasks. The results verify the effectiveness of the proposed methodology under different hyperparameter configurations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Adaptive and Nonlinear Control of Robotics)
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26 pages, 20338 KiB  
Article
Robust Adaptive-Sliding-Mode Control for Teleoperation Systems with Time-Varying Delays and Uncertainties
by Yeong-Hwa Chang, Cheng-Yuan Yang and Hung-Wei Lin
Robotics 2024, 13(6), 89; https://doi.org/10.3390/robotics13060089 - 13 Jun 2024
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1338
Abstract
Master–slave teleoperation systems with haptic feedback enable human operators to interact with objects or perform tasks in remote environments. This paper presents a sliding-mode control scheme tailored for bilateral teleoperation systems operating in the presence of unknown uncertainties and time-varying delays. To address [...] Read more.
Master–slave teleoperation systems with haptic feedback enable human operators to interact with objects or perform tasks in remote environments. This paper presents a sliding-mode control scheme tailored for bilateral teleoperation systems operating in the presence of unknown uncertainties and time-varying delays. To address unknown but bounded uncertainties, adaptive laws are derived alongside controller design. Additionally, a linear matrix inequality is solved to determine the allowable bound of delays. Stability of the closed-loop system is ensured through Lyapunov–Krasovskii functional analysis. Two-degree-of-freedom mechanisms are self-built as haptic devices. Free-motion and force-perception scenarios are examined, with experimental results validating and comparing performances. The proposed adaptive-sliding-control method increases the position performance from 58.48% to 82.55% and the force performance from 83.48% to 99.77%. The proposed control scheme demonstrates enhanced position tracking and force perception in bilateral teleoperation systems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Adaptive and Nonlinear Control of Robotics)
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