Position Control of Flexible Manipulator using PSO-tuned PID Controller

Flexible manipulators have been tried to use due to their advantages such as the requirement of low drive power because of low weight, low power consumption, higher load capacity, high-speed operation, small actuators and low production costs. These advantages of flexible manipulators are due to their structural flexibility in joints or links. However, the flexibility causes vibrations in the end effector both on the move and after the force that causes the movement is removed. It takes some time to dampen these vibrations. In this study, particle swarm optimization (PSO)-tuned PID controller is used to control the position of the flexible manipulator directly and indirectly to reduce the vibration of the manipulator. The fitness function selected for the PSO includes parameters related to both the desired time response and vibration. Thus, the optimal PID parameters found with PSO control the position of the flexible manipulator and ensure low vibration.