Adaptive impedance control for docking robot via Stewart parallel mechanism

Area of Science:

• Robotics
• Control Systems
• Mechanical Engineering

Background:

• Autonomous docking of ground unmanned vehicles faces challenges with excessive collision forces due to environmental interference.
• Existing control strategies may not adequately address dynamic contact force variations during docking.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate an adaptive impedance control strategy for docking robots to mitigate excessive collision contact forces.
• To design a locking mechanism based on a Stewart platform for enhanced docking stability and safety.

Main Methods:

• Construction of an inverse kinematics model for the docking robot.
• Design of an adaptive impedance control algorithm incorporating a steady-state error model for contact force and an adaptive compensation controller.
• System stability analysis to ensure reliable performance.
• Simulations and experimental validation of the proposed control strategy.

Main Results:

• The adaptive impedance control significantly reduces docking collision contact forces compared to traditional impedance control.
• Active compliance control was successfully achieved, demonstrating the system's ability to adapt to external interferences.
• Experimental results validated the effectiveness of the proposed control strategy and locking mechanism.

Conclusions:

• The adaptive impedance control strategy offers a robust solution for minimizing collision forces in autonomous docking.
• The developed Stewart platform-based locking mechanism enhances docking reliability.
• This research provides a novel approach for autonomous docking and contributes to the advancement of intelligent vehicles.