Omni-Wrist III - A new generation of pointing devices. II. Gimbals systems - control

The Omni-Wrist III robotic manipulator, inspired in design by the kinematics of the human wrist, represents, with the full 180/spl deg/ hemisphere of singularity-free range, a very capable alternative to traditional gimbals systems. Research efforts at the Laser Communications Research Laboratory at Binghamton University have resulted in the establishment of an accurate mathematical model, which was utilized in the development of control systems presented in this paper. A state variable controller and two linear model following controllers are developed and evaluated. The third controller is designed to achieve full decoupling of the highly coupled system. The adaptation and disturbance rejection capabilities of the controllers are demonstrated through friction compensation.