Fuzzy logic controller and real-time implementation of a ball balancing beam

A ball balancing beam is a nonlinear dynamic system which is quite di cult to control using conventional methods since some special mathematical techniques and control theory knowledge are required to derive the equations. There are di cult issues in this system: it has delayed feedback associated with control actions; and the \jumping ball" phenomenon brings sensor uncertainty. Balancing is essential in carrying out robotic tasks such as transporting objects in robotic arms and walking of legged robots. Fuzzy logic will be implemented to balance this nonlinear dynamic system. Relative to conventional controllers, a fuzzy logic controller requires less mathematical derivation in design; it has high noise tolerance, probably gravity independence, and it is portable to other scales of same system setup such as with a shorter beam or a heavier ball. In this paper, membership function construction, and fuzzy rule generation are discussed in detail. The hardware setup is shown. In addition, ways to overcome feedback delays and noisy signals are presented. Finally, the performance of the fuzzy controller will be evaluated and compared to conventional and neural network controllers.