Fuzzy control of a decoupled vibratory feeding system

This paper describes the development of a decoupled vibratory feeding system (DVFS), while the design and fuzzy control strategy are stressed. In DVFS, the vibration angle and the frequency and the waveform of the driving signals as well as the phase angle between the vertical vibration and horizontal vibration all can be easily adjusted, in software way, to suit agile manufacturing. The computer system and sensors form up a closed-loop digital control system and various control strategies can be easily applied to the feeding system to guarantee optimal feeding performance. A DVFS prototype has been successfully developed, on which experimental investigation is carried out with promising results acquired. Its mechatronic design and fuzzy control together with the experimental results are presented.