Mechanics and Robust Coordinated Control of the Automated Roadway Debris Vacuum Robotic Manipulator
Se-Han Lee, Ty A. Lasky, Steven A. Velinsky · Mechanics Based Design of Structures and Machines · 2005
This paper discusses the development of a redundant, long-reach robotic device aimed at the vacuum removal of debris from roadways and roadsides. The future Automated Roadway Debris Vacuum (ARDVAC) system will include trajectory tracking, an advanced controller combining a PID joint controller with a robust H ∞ task-space controller, and a trajectory generation method related to the coverage problem. The manipulator control is coordinated with the vehicle's speed to track task-space end-effector trajectories, exploiting redundancies to achieve the required motion. The controller is robust with respect to external disturbances, including the end-effector forces created by the vacuuming process, thus maintaining the ideal fly-height for optimal vacuum efficiency. Both the theoretical development of the controller and simulation results are presented, which show the efficacy of the approach.