Real-Time Tracking and Position Control of an Elastic Cable-Driven Winch System

This study explores the sliding mode control (SMC) strategy to address challenges such as nonlinear dynamics, steady-state errors, and torque fluctuations in elastic cable-driven winch systems. While traditional Proportional-Derivative (PD) control is sufficient for linear systems, it struggles with instability and accuracy issues in flexible systems. SMC provides robustness against uncertainties but can cause mechanical wear and performance degradation due to its chattering effect. To mitigate this, a continuous control signal-based SMC approach was adopted, reducing chattering and improving system stability. This study focuses on tracking and position control, as well as managing motor torque fluctuations during position control, emphasizing controller parameter optimization. Experimental results demonstrate that SMC outperforms PD control in tracking, position control, and torque management.