Collision Detection System for Manipulator Based on Adaptive Control Scheme

In this paper, we propose a dynamic collision detection system using a nonlinear adaptive control scheme proposed by Slotine and Li. The system detects collisions of a manipulator with its environment without using external sensors. An adaptive control scheme is employed to control the manipulator and to estimate its dynamic parameters. The system detects collisions based on the difference between the actual input torque to the manipulator and the reference input torque, which is calculated based on the estimated parameters of the manipulator dynamics. The proposed collision detection scheme is applied to an industrial manipulator and experimental results illustrate the validity of the proposed scheme.