Nonlinear feedback control of flexible joint manipulators: a single link case study

A nonlinear feedback control for a flexible joint manipulator is investigated. It is shown that if the elastic (parasitic) modes are weakly observable from the output of the system, a state-space coordinate transformation and a static state feedback and control space transformation will turn the flexible system into a linear controllable and observable system. In contrast, if the parasitics are strongly observable, a dynamic state feedback is required for input-output linearization. Numerical simulations for a single link flexible joint manipulator are reported, illustrating the application of the methodology.<>