Optimal Motion Planning and Energy-Based Control of a Single Mast Stacker Crane

This brief presents a flatness-based optimal trajectory planning methodology combined with an energy-based feedback for a single mast stacker crane in, for instance, automated warehouses. By means of a laboratory model, we address the classical problems modeling, flatness analysis, optimal trajectory planning, and feedback design. The main focus is on the efficient formulation of the trajectory planning problem as well as on a novel energy-based feedback methodology exploiting structural invariants (Casimir functionals). To solve the arising optimization problem, state-of-the-art software packages are utilized. Moreover, experimental results obtained from the laboratory model demonstrate the capability of the proposed feedforward and feedback methodology.