Compensation of friction and backlash effects in an electrical actuator

In this paper, non-linear observers, based on an estimation of the friction force and the disturbed torque transmitted due to the dead zone, are developed for systems presenting mechanical imperfections such as friction and backlash. Then an adaptive controller using these non-linear observers is presented, to compensate for mechanical disturbances on-line. Simulation and experimental results applied on an electrical actuator are given to support the theoretical demonstrations.