Dynamic properties and nonlinear control of robots with mixed rigid/elastic joints

Compliance in motion transmission components is the main source of vibrational behavior in robot manipulators. Since the actuator/transmission design may differ from joint to joint, many robot arms have some joints that can be considered completely rigid and some other where elasticity is relevant. We consider dynamic modeling and control design for robot manipulators with mixed rigid/clastic joints. A nonlinear dynamic feedback controller is presented that allows to achieve exact linearization and input-output decoupling for the general class of robots having mixed rigid/clastic joints in any possible kinematic sequence. Simulation results are presented for a 2R planar arm having only the second joint elastic.