Force-Motion Control For A Six Degree-Of-Freedom Robotic Manipulator

TL;DR

This paper introduces a unified control algorithm for a six-DOF robotic manipulator that combines trajectory tracking with force regulation to prevent damage during contact, validated through simulations.

Contribution

A novel integrated motion and force control strategy for six-DOF manipulators that ensures safe contact interactions and trajectory accuracy.

Findings

Successful numerical simulation validation

Effective force exertion method during contact

Trajectory tracking maintained during force regulation

Abstract

This paper presents a unified algorithm for motion and force control for a six degree-of-freedom spatial manipulator. The motion-force controller performs trajectory tracking, maneuvering the manipulator's end-effector through desired position, orientations and rates. When contacting an obstacle or target object, the force module of the controller restricts the manipulator movements with a novel force exertion method, which prevents damage to the manipulator, the end-effector, and the objects during the contact or collision. The core strategy presented in this paper is to design the linear acceleration for the end-effector which ensures both trajectory tracking and restriction of any contact force at the end-effector. The design of the controller is validated through numerical simulations and digital twin validation.