Modelling and PD control of a novel reconfigurable robotic machining manipulator

Robotic machining is being applied in the manufacture of a broad spectrum of products and in a diverse industrial sectors ranging from aerospace, automotive to fashion. This paper presents a conceptual design, modelling and proportional-derivative (PD) control of a four degree-of-freedom (DOF) robotic machining manipulator (RMM) for use in a reconfigurable manufacturing system (RMS). The conceptual design of the RMM is introduced, followed by its mathematical modelling, and then the PD controller for the multi-input/multi-output (MIMO) system is designed for position tracking in absence of a dither signal. The simulation results justify the application of the PD controller through the set point tracking performances.