Head Following Control Method of a Mobile Continuum Robot for Deep-Cavity Inspection

摘要

Continuum robots can adapt to the deep-cavity tasks due to the slim and flexible features. However, it is difficult for the robot to navigate into the deep destination point without interference of the whole body. Therefore, a head following control method is proposed to realize navigation in the complex non-structural environments. Firstly, the kinematics model is established through the virtual D-H rigid-link method. Then the optimization function that represents the deviation from the ideal path is given out. And the optimal parameters calculated by PSO can be obtained, which ensure the body configuration follow the head well. The simulation results show that the proposed method is valid for the continuum robot in both the planar and 3D space.