Neural network controller for robotic motion control

Since a robotic manipulator has a complicated mathematical model, it is difficult to design a control system based on the complicated multi-variable nonlinear coupling dynamic model. Intelligent controllers using fuzzy and neural network approaches do not need a real mathematical model to design the control structure and have attracted the attention of robotic control researchers recently. A traditional fuzzy logic controller does not have learning capability and it needs a lot of effort to search for the optimal control rules and the shapes of membership functions. Owing to the time-varying behaviour of the system, the required fine tracking accuracy is difficult to achieve by adjusting the fuzzy rules only. The implementation problems of neural network control are the initial training and initial transient stability. In order to improve the position control accuracy and system robustness for industrial applications, a neural controller is first trained off-line by using the input and output (I/O) data of a traditional fuzzy controller. Then the neural controller is implemented on a five-degrees-of-freedom robot with a back propagation algorithm for online adjustment. The experimental results show that this neural network controller achieved the required trajectory tracking accuracy after 15 on-line operations.