Comparison of control algorithms for flexible joint robots implemented on a KUKA IR 161/60 industrial robot

Presents two simple modifications of a standard robot controller for a KUKA IR 161/60 industrial robot: improved trajectory generation and flexible control of the first joint. Tests show that the improved trajectory generation gives the largest contribution to the improvement of the performance, and that only at very high velocities and accelerations, there is a significant difference between a flexible controller and a classical PID controller. The paper also shows that a nonlinear flexible controller for links 2 and 3 can be implemented, and that it improves the static and dynamic accuracy of the robot.<>