Smooth adaptive hybrid impedance control for robotic contact force tracking in dynamic environments

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to take transient contact force response, overshoots and steady-state force tracking error problems into account to form an excellent force controller. Design/methodology/approach The basic impedance function with a pre-PID tuner is designed to improve the force response. A dynamic adaptive adjustment function that combines the advantages of hybrid impedance and adaptive hybrid impedance control is presented to achieve both force overshoots suppressing and tracking ability. Findings The introduced pre-PID tuner impedance function can achieve more than the pure impedance function in aspects of converging to the desired value and reducing the force overshoots. The performance of force overshoots suppression and force tracking error are maintained by introducing the dynamic adaptive sigma adjustment function. The simulation and experimental results both show the achieved control performance by comparing with the previous control methods. Practical implications The implementation of the controller is easy and convenient in practical manufacture scenes that require force control using industrial robots. Originality/value A superior robot controller adapting to a variety of complex tasks owing to the following characteristics: maintenance of high-accuracy position tracking capability in free-space (basic capabilities of modern industrial robots); maintenance of high speed, stability and smooth contact performance in collision stage; and presentation of high-precision force tracking capability in steady contact.