Title from PDF of title page (University of Missouri--Columbia, viewed on Feb 18, 2010). The entire thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file; a non-technical public abstract appears in the public.pdf file. Thesis advisor: Dr. Marjorie Skubic. Includes bibliographical references.

In this thesis, a novel robust estimation strategy for observing the system state variables of robotic manipulators with distributed flexibility is established. Motivation for the derived approach stems from the observation that lightweight, high speed, and large workspace robotic manipulators often suffer performance degradation because of inherent structural compliance. This flexibility often results in persistent residual vibration, which must be damped before useful work can resume. Inherent flexibility in robotic manipulators, then, increases cycle times and shortens the operational lives of the robots. Traditional compensation techniques, those which are commonly used for the control of rigid manipulators, can only approach a fraction of the open-loop system bandwidth without inducing significant excitation of the resonant dynamics. To improve the performance of these systems, the structural flexibility cannot simply be ignored, as it is when the links are significantly stiff and approximate rigid bodies. One thus needs a model to design a suitable compensator for the vibration, but any model developed to correct this problem will contain parametric error. And in the case of very lightly damped systems, like flexible robotic manipulators, this error can lead to instability of the control system for even small errors in system parameters. This work presents a systematic solution for the problem of robust state estimation for flexible manipulators in the presence of parametric modeling error. The solution includes: 1) a modeling strategy, 2) sensor selection and placement, and 3) a novel, multiple model estimator. Modeling of the FLASHMan flexible gantry manipulator is accomplished using a developed hybrid transfer matrix / assumed modes method (TMM/AMM) approach to determine an accurate low-order state space representation of the system dynamics. This model is utilized in a genetic algorithm optimization in determining the placement of MEMs accelerometers for robust estimation and observability of the system’s flexible state variables. The initial estimation method applied to the task of determining robust state estimates under conditions of parametric modeling error was of a sliding mode observer type. Evaluation of the method through analysis, simulations and experiments showed that the state estimates produced were inadequate. This led to the development of a novel, multiple model adaptive estimator. This estimator utilizes a bank of similarly designed sub-estimators and a selection algorithm to choose the true value from a given set of possible system parameter values as well as the correct state vector estimate. Simulation and experimental results are presented which demonstrate the applicability and effectiveness of the derived method for the task of state variable estimation for flexible robotic manipulators.

This thesis investigates the control of motion for a general class of vehicles that rotate and translate in three-space, and are propelled by a thrust vector which has fixed direction in body frame. The thesis addresses the problems of path following and position control. For path following, a feedback linearization controller is presented that makes the vehicle follow an arbitrary closed curve while simultaneously allowing the designer to specify the velocity profile of the vehicle on the path and its heading. For position control, a two-stage approach is presented that decouples position control from attitude control, allowing for a modular design and yielding almost global asymptotic stability of any desired hovering equilibrium. The effectiveness of the proposed method is verified both in simulation and experimentally by means of a hardware-in-the-loop setup emulating a co-axial helicopter.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 1996. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves [111]-119).

Thesis (M.S.)--Brigham Young University. Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 91).

Material handling is a term that includes all kinds of handling of material from a raw product to a finished one. ABB is active in the following segments; foundry, packaging and palletizing, metal industry and plastics industry. The demands for efficiency and reliability have been set very high in the industrial sector. Optimizing of the material handling will give the company higher cost-effectiveness. Around the robot there are different kinds of material flows, to optimize the cycle time, consisting of carriages combined in different ways. Motion Control is a complex system with main functions such as; positioning, synchronizing, indexing and more. The products in the system need to cooperate to make these functions possible therefore integration of motor- and servo products are important. In an automated system there is a demand for continuous update of motor reference such as speed and torque. There is also a need for correction when material slips away and position itself at unwanted places at the transport carriage. ABB Motors and Drives product portfolio consists of drives such as; Motiflex, Microflex and ACSM1 and the motors such as BSM (Brushless Servo Motor). The new simplified solution for the material handling will consist of integration of motors and drives products. The new simplified solutions have been sketched on paper first and then later illustrated in Google SketchUp. The SketchUp drawings consist of one overview drawing with a layer for drive and a layer for security. The layer for drive is divided into three parts for easier identification of the products and a more perspicuous view. A presentation has been prepared with the idea to look like an App. The mouse is used to navigate back and forth through the factory/presentation. The presentation can be used for the following activities; fairs, new employee, sales person and clients. Therefore also USP, Unique Selling Points has been prepared. / Materialhantering är ett begrepp som omfattar all hantering av material från råvara till en färdig produkt. ABB är verksamma inom följande segment; gjuteri, paketering och palletering, metallindustri och plastindustrin. Inom industrisektorn ställs det höga krav på effektivitet och driftsäkerhet. Optimal materialhantering ger hög kostnadseffektivitet. Kring roboten finns det olika typer av materialflöden via transportband. Motion Control är ett komplext system med huvudfunktioner som; positionering, synkronisering, indexering, med flera. För att dessa funktioner ska fungera krävs en samverkan av motor- och servoprodukterna i systemet. I ett automatiserat system krävs en ständig referensuppdatering av hastighet och acceleration för att motorer eller servon ska samverka samt korrigering av fel när material glider iväg till oönskade positioner på transport banden. ABB Motors & Drives produktutbud består av motorer och servodrivsystem/ frekvensomriktare. Utbudet av frekvensomriktare utgörs av Motiflex, Microflex och ACSM1. Motorutbudet utgörs främst av BSM (Brushless Servo Motor). De nya typlösningarna innehåller integrering av ABB:s produktutbud inom motion control system. Typlösningar som tagits fram har först skisserats på papper för att sedan illustreras i Google SketchUp. SketchUp ritningarna består av en översiktsritning med ett lager för drivning och ett lager för säkerhet. Fabriken delades sedan upp i tre delar för att lättare kunna identifiera de olika produkterna. En App-liknande presentation har tagits fram där muspekaren används för att navigera sig runt i fabriken/presentationen. Detta för att kunna användas som material för; mässor, introduktion för nyanställda, säljare och kunder. Därför har även USP, Unique Selling Points tagits fram för varje produkt.

Background: Running can lead to injuries, and there are several types of shoes that are designed to reduce them. Running shoes have not yet been proven to prevent running related injuries. This literature review has compiled the evidence of motion control, neutral, stability and minimalistic shoes that can be recommended depending on the individual's foot type for injury prevention. The aim of this review was to investigate whether there is evidence that support that different running shoes could prevent injuries to runners with different foot types. Methods: A descriptive design was chosen for this literature review. Six articles from the databases PubMed and PEDro that met the inclusion criteria were selected and examined according to the PEDro-scale. Results: When using the running shoe motion control, 17,6% of the participants got a foot injury regardless of the type of foot. When using stability shoes 32,4% was damages and that was also independent of the type of foot. The injury incidence with neutral shoes was 33,3% at neutral foot type and 25% at pronation. When using minimalistic shoes, an increased injury risk was seen by 20%. Conclusions: This literature review cannot confirm the hypothesis that running shoes based on foot type can reduce the injury risk.

This thesis introduces a new type of walking machine that appears promising due to its relative simplicity and efficiency. After an introduction to a selection of previous walking machines, the new machine’s history, advantages, operation and a method for solving its kinematics are given. Early attempts to optimize the mechanism to a range of criteria are described and their shortfalls exposed. A second attempt to optimize the leg geometry by genetic algorithm is detailed and the results of this search discussed. A mechanics model of a hypothetical machine is developed from first principles and the implications of the analysis described. Stability limits and tractive abilities of the machine are explored. A method for determining the loads on the links that constitute the leg and the vehicle chassis is given. A series of prototypes has been constructed and discussions of these machines are given. The most recent prototype is used in a pair of experiments to validate the kinematic and kinetic models. The experimental method, a statistical analysis of results and a discussion are provided for each. The thesis concludes by considering what work remains to be done before a practical cargo carrying transport walking machine can be designed. / Prof. A.L. Nel

Robotization of industry is very important in these days. It is possible to replace human workers with robots and because of that make manufacturing faster. This master’s thesis includes feasibility study of robotic welding for stainless steel part guide rail. Quality of robotic welding was evaluated on testing pieces. Robotic welding was 88,5 % faster than current welding method. Costs of manufacture of one piece were 40 % cut.

A laser-based automated mechanical mobility measurement system has been developed that can obtain a very high spatial resolution of frequency response functions (FRFs) for experimental modal analysis where one-dimensional structural motion predominates. With this system FRFs are measured and recorded in a format that is readily imported into a popular modal analysis software. A scanning laser Doppler velocimeter is coupled to a multi-channel FFf analyzer system for efficient data collection and management of spatially distributed FRFs. The objectives in designing this measurement system is to take advantage of the laser's non-contacting nature, its high spatial resolution, and its fast point-to-point movement. By using the scanning capabilities of the laser, experimental mobility FRF data can be collected in those structures that have dominant response in one direction at up to 16,000,000 positions. Moreover, the laser does not mass load the structure thus making the structure time invariant unlike "roving" accelerometers. The design and implementation of this automated mechanical mobility measurement system is presented. Instrumentation interfacing and control issues as well as software development issues are addressed in this thesis. Procedures required to implement the laser-based measurement system are presented. The performance of the laser-based system is presented along with an illustrative example of its use on a free-free rectangular plate where the vibration response is primarily in one direction. / Master of Science