An optimal performance control scheme for a 3D crane

This paper presents an optimal performance control scheme for control of a three dimensional (3D) crane system including a Zero Vibration shaper which considers two control objectives concurrently. The control objectives are fast and accurate positioning of a trolley and minimum sway of a payload. A complete mathematical model of a lab-scaled 3D crane is simulated in Simulink. With a specific cost function the proposed controller is designed to cater both control objectives similar to a skilled operator. Simulation and experimental studies on a 3D crane show that the proposed controller has better performance as compared to a sequentially tuned PID-PID anti swing controller. The controller provides better position response with satisfactory payload sway in both rail and trolley responses. Experiments with different payloads and cable lengths show that the proposed controller is robust to changes in payload with satisfactory responses.