Fuzzy coordinator compensation for balancing control of cart-seesaw system

In contrast with fully controllable systems, a super articulated mechanical system (SAMS) is a controlled underactuated mechanical system in which the dimensions of the configuration space exceed the dimensions of the control input space. The control of the cart-seesaw system is especially difficult since it is an underactuated mechanism (three degrees of freedom and only two inputs). This research develops a balancing approach for a novel SAMS model, called the cart-seesaw system, using fuzzy logic and fuzzy coordinator compensation to drive the sliding carts and keep the seesaw angle close to zero in the equilibrium state. Experimental results indicate that utilizing the proposed control methodology significantly enhances the performance. Moreover, the presentation of the fuzzy balancing controller is not considerably affected by changes in the environmental parameters, which demonstrates the effectiveness of the fuzzy controller in minimizing the seesaw tilt angle in the time domain, although the system is caused by unpredicted loading variation. Moreover, the experimental results indicate the usefulness and robustness of the proposed fuzzy control methodology. Furthermore, the proposed software/hardware platform can be beneficial for standardizing laboratory equipment and developing amusement apparatus. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.