Use of Compliant Actuators in Robotic Applications

Abstract

In industrial robotics - accurate - positioning of manipulators or end effectors is by far the most common application. The system is designed to meet the high mechanical stiffness and high feedback gains required, which improves the accuracy, the stability and the bandwidth of the position control. A typical DC-drive with gearbox and conventional feedback control often suits this purpose. New robotic technologies emerge, however, in which accurate positioning or trajectory tracking is not the primary design goal or unable to compensate for the many drawbacks- from this different point of view - that comes along with conventional electrical actuators, like high reflective inertia, high stiffness, low force-to-weight ratio. These new robotic applications can strongly benefit from compliant actuator technology.