A Novel Method to Estimate Tilt Angle of a Body using a Pendulum

Abstract: Most of the advanced control systems use sensor-based feedback for robust control. Tilt angle estimation is key feedback for many robotics and mechatronics applications in order to stabilize a system. Tilt angle cannot be directly measured when the system in consideration is not attached to a stationary frame. it is usually estimated through indirect measurements in such systems. The precision of this estimation depends on the measurements; hence it can get expensive and complicated as the precision requirement increases. This research is aimed at developing a novel and economic method to estimate tilt angle with a relatively less sophisticated and complicated system, while maintaining precision in estimating tilt angle. The method is developed to explore a pendulum as an inertial measurement sensor and estimates tilt angle based on dynamics of pendulum and parameter estimation models. Further, algorithms are developed with varying order of complexity and accuracy to have customization for different applications. Furthermore, this study will validate the developed algorithms by experimental testing. This method focuses on developing algorithms to reduce the input measurement error in the Kalman filter.