PID Control for Dynamixel servos using Arbotix-M

[navidahmeduom]

Hi all,

I am currently working on a three joint robotic arm with MX64T,MX28T and AX12A used for joint 1, 2 and 3 respectively. I am using the Arbotix-M Robocontroller to control them.

I am currently using the 'AX12.h' library for controlling the servos. I was just wondering if you can use the same library to change the P,I and D values in the MX-28 and MX64 using the Arbotix controller. Can I just directly write to the register of the servos? Also do I need to use a separate library for writing to the MX series?

Any help will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[jwatte]

Yes, you can directly write to the registers of the servos.
The MX series use the same TTL protocol as the AX series, but the register layout is slightly different.
Check the manual for each of them to get the details:
http://support.robotis.com/en/product/dxl_main.htm

[navidahmeduom]

Yes, you can directly write to the registers of the servos.
The MX series use the same TTL protocol as the AX series, but the register layout is slightly different.
Check the manual for each of them to get the details:
http://support.robotis.com/en/product/dxl_main.htm

Thank you for your reply.

I have checked the register layout and I have been able to use the 'AX12.h' library for controlling the MX series servos. The P, I and D registers for MX series servos are 28, 27 and 26 respectively. On the 'AX12.h' library, they are defined as different registers for Compliance slope of the AX series servos. But if I writing to a specific register, does it matter how it is defined in the library?
For example, this is how the P,I and D registers are stated in the AX12.h library.

//
#define AX_CW_COMPLIANCE_MARGIN 26
#define AX_CCW_COMPLIANCE_MARGIN 27
#define AX_CW_COMPLIANCE_SLOPE 28
//

Can I then still use the same library to write the PID values or do I need to use a different one or edit the defined registers myself?

Any help will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[kgranat]

So as you found from the e-manual for the MX-28
http://support.robotis.com/en/produc...ries/mx-28.htm

P/I/D are at register 28/27/26

The simplest way to set the values would be with set register (we'll assume servo ID 1 ans that we're setting all the PID values to they're default values of 32/0/0

 ax12SetRegister(1, 28, 32) //set servo ID 1's register 28(P) to the value of 32
 ax12SetRegister(1, 27, 0) //set servo ID 1's register 27(I) to the value of 0
 ax12SetRegister(1, 26, 0) //set servo ID 1's register 26(D) to the value of 0

Alternative, you could define P,I, and D registers

#define MX_P 28
#define MX_I 27
#define MX_D 26


ax12SetRegister(1, MX_P , 32) //set servo ID 1's register 28(P) to the value of 32
ax12SetRegister(1, MX_I , 0) //set servo ID 1's register 27(I) to the value of 0
ax12SetRegister(1, MX_D , 0) //set servo ID 1's register 26(D) to the value of 0

This will have the same effect as the first 3 lines of code, but might be easier to read.

I've got some updates to the arbotix libraries in the works to better address some of the #define issues like this.

[jwatte]

if I writing to a specific register, does it matter how it is defined in the library?

Not really, no. As long as the integer values are correct, the servo doesn't know what symbol the code is using.
In fact, I could do this:

#define PIE_IS_DELICIOUS 28

ax12SetRegister(1, PIE_IS_DELICIOUS, 32);

As soon as the compiler sees "PIE_IS_DELICIOUS" it will replace it with the text 28, which gets turned into the integer value 28, which is what the ax12SetRegister actually uses to send data on the TTL bus. The servo will just see "set register 28 of servo id 1 to the value 32." (The exact rules for how a C/C++ compiler turns source code into machine code are somewhat complex, and something that a C/C++ programmer will eventually have to learn and memorize.)

Also: Kyle's code, while great and helpful, is missing terminating semicolons from the calls to ax12SetRegister(), so it won't quite compile the way it is.

[navidahmeduom]

Thank you both for the help.

I also wanted to query if it is possible to adjust the P,I and D values for the AX-12A. There is no specific register dedicated for it, but is there any way around it? Can the compliance registers be used for this purpose?

[tician]

Only the MX servos, and I think the XL-320, have PID control. AX, RX, DX, EX all use a simpler and purely proportional controller (compliance slope, compliance margin, and punch as described in the Robotis documentation). Punch is minimum attempted driving PWM; margin is how close to the goal position where the algorithm will say 'good enough'; slope is the number of encoder ticks over which the driving PWM will change from minimum (punch) to maximum (torque limit). Punch is generally never changed. Margin affects how 'loose' the servo is in attempting to hold a goal position (larger margin requires greater deviation from goal position to get any response). Slope affects how 'soft' the servo is in attempting to hold a goal position (larger slope means slower change in driving PWM value in response to deviation from goal position beyond the margin).