TABULAR PULSE-WIDTH CONTROL OF A TWO DEGREE-OF-FREEDOM MANIPULATOR

Pulse-width control, when applied to single degree-of-freedom systems, is very effective in overcoming the deleterious effects of Coulomb friction and stiction. This paper applies pulse-width control to a multi-degree-of-freedom mechanism. Results are presented based both on simulations and on the performance of a two degree-of-freedom experimental manipulator developed at Bucknell University. A unique aspect of this research is the use of a table of pulse-width gain values rather than simply a single gain for each axis of motion. Results indicate that tabular pulse-width control produces responses that converge rapidly and achieve positioning accuracies equal to the precision of measurement sensors.