Position-Level Dynamic Coupling Analysis of Dual-Arm Underwater Vehicle Manipulator System

Dual-arm underwater vehicle manipulator system(UVMS) has great potential in underwater operation. However, due to the dynamic interaction, there are multiple dynamic coupling effects between two arms and between each arm and the base, which brings great challenges to the trajectory planning and coordinated control of UVMS. Firstly, we analyze the coupling effect of manipulator motion on base motion in position-level. A modeling method based on base centroid equivalent manipulator (BCEM) is proposed to analyze the coupling relationship between the movement of end effector and the position change of base centroid. Then, the dynamic coupling index is defined to evaluate the dynamic coupling degree, which can be used as the performance evaluation index of the interference of the robot motion planning on the base motion and the design criterion of the structure and mass distribution of the manipulator, as well as to assist in selecting the best installation position of the manipulator. Finally, some simulations were carried out to analyze the influencing factors of coupling effect of dual-arm UVMS. This work provides a theoretical basis for the design, performance evaluation, trajectory planning and control of dual-arm UVMS.