Development of Electric Cart with Function of Maintaining/Improving Exercise Ability
—Part II: H_∞ Control of the Electric Cart—

Abstract

A three-wheeled electric cart is developed for the elderly and people undergoing rehabilitation. A bilateral master-slave system configuration is employed to control the speed of the cart, an impedance model is used to describe the feeling of pushing the pedals, and the controller is designed based on H_∞ control theory. Experimental results on a fabricated cart demonstrate the validity and effectiveness of the design methodology.