Deformation Control of a Manipulator Based on the Zener Model

Abstract

In this study, passive dynamic control of a manipulator is designed and realized. According to the control strategy, the shift in the position and orientation of an end effector attributable to an external force is regarded as deformation of the robot. The Zener model, known as a standard linear solid model, is used to generate the deformable behavior, which describes the combination of plastic and elastic deformation. Based on the relation analysis between the Zener model and two other deformable models, two types of control methods are proposed in terms of the model’s expression. Physical simulations with a robotic arm are executed to validate the proposed control laws.