Dynamical Modeling and Control of Soft Robots with Non-constant\n Curvature Deformation

Abstract

The Piecewise Constant Curvature (PCC) model is the most widely used soft\nrobotic modeling and control. However, the PCC fails to accurately describe the\ndeformation of the soft robots when executing dynamic tasks or interacting with\nthe environment. This paper presents a simple threedimensional (3D) modeling\nmethod for a multi-segment soft robotic manipulator with non-constant curvature\ndeformation. We devise kinematic and dynamical models for soft manipulators by\nmodeling each segment of the manipulator as two stretchable links connected by\na universal joint. Based on that, we present two controllers for dynamic\ntrajectory tracking in confguration space and pose control in task space,\nrespectively. Model accuracy is demonstrated with simulations and experimental\ndata. The controllers are implemented on a four-segment soft robotic\nmanipulator and validated in dynamic motions and pose control with unknown\nloads. The experimental results show that the dynamic controller enables a\nstable reference trajectory tracking at speeds up to 7m/s.\n