ROBUST AND ACCURATE TIME-OPTIMAL PATH-TRACKING CONTROL FOR ROBOT MANIPULATORS

The well-known algorithms for time optimal trajectory plan ning are di fficult to apply in practice because they rely on imperfect models of the robot dynamics, they take no account of controller dynamics, and t hey provide no connection to tracking accuracy. In this paper we propo se two schemes for planning and implementing time-optimal control to e nable robots under computed torque control to track paths to a prescri bed tolerance. Experimental results confirm the theories, showing that both schemes track to a prescribed accuracy in a near time-optimal fa shion. The second scheme is shown to perform better, achieving complet e torque utilization nearly all of the time.