Kinematically Constrained Jerk–Continuous S-Curve Trajectory Planning in Joint Space for Industrial Robots

Abstract

This work deals with jerk–continuous trajectory planning for robotic manipulators by means of the fourth-order S-curve to ensure motion smoothness. The algorithm presented in this work can cause the acceleration and jerk to stay in a saturated state in order to improve the efficiency of a robot’s programming and operation. Moreover, a multi-axis synchronization planning algorithm is proposed and integrated for enhanced motion stability in terms of generated synchronized and continuous motion trajectories, for which the effectiveness of the proposed trajectory planning algorithm is verified in both the joint and Cartesian spaces. The proposed algorithm does not involve any optimization procedures or iterative processes, as the kinematically constrained trajectory is generated by polynomial equations to realize the real-time motion control of robots. Moreover, the presented algorithm can generate the jerk continuity trajectory, rather than only the acceleration continuity, as in most reported works.