DIDIM: A new method for the dynamic identification of robots from only torque data

The identification of the dynamic parameters of robot is based on the use of the inverse dynamic model which is linear with respect to the parameters. This model is sampled while the robot is tracking trajectories which excite the system dynamics in order to get an over determined linear system. The linear least squares solution of this system calculates the estimated parameters. The efficiency of this method has been proved through the experimental identification of many prototype and industrial robots. However, this method needs joint torque and position measurements and the estimation of the joint velocities and accelerations through the pass band filtering of the joint position at high sample rate. The new method bypasses the need to measure or estimate joint position, velocity and acceleration by using both Direct and Inverse Dynamic Identification Models (DIDIM). It needs only torque data at a low sample rate. It is based on a closed loop simulation which integrates the direct dynamic model. The optimal parameters minimize the 2 norm of the error between the actual torque and the simulated torque assuming the same control law and the same tracking trajectory. This non linear least squares problem is dramatically simplified using the inverse model to calculate the derivatives of the cost function.