PAMM · Proc. Appl. Math. Mech. 11, 955 – 956 (2011) / DOI 10.1002/pamm.

201110448

Towards Washout Filter Concepts for Motion Simulators on the Base of a

Stewart Platform
Klemens Springer1,∗ , Hubert Gattringer1 , and Hartmut Bremer1
1
Institute for Robotics, Johannes Kepler University Linz, Altenbergerstr. 69, 4040 Linz-Austria

In this paper we present a pneumatically driven Stewart platform as a basis for motion simulators. Motion platforms, that
simulate perceived situations in aeroplanes, cars or ships, have workspace constraints in every degree of freedom. Therefore
it is necessary to adapt the accelerations and angular rates in order to stay within the physical restrictions.
For realizing a flight or ride simulator on the basis of the Stewart platform, “Washout Filters” are used to change the signals
of the open source software FlightGearand to minimize the sensation error between simulator and aircraft. Different filter
concepts are implemented and evaluated.
The platform presented in this document is a parallel kinematic robot, driven by fluidic muscles. The pneumatically actuated
muscles are only able to produce tensile forces. Therefore a spiral spring from a passenger car is used to apply the compressive
forces and torques.
c 2011 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim

1 Human perception
Human perception is based on visual and vestibular effects, that play an important role during motion simulation. Numerous
publications are dealing with lots of different parametrizable influences, modeling and empirical tests. Comprehensive studies
concerning this topic can be found in [3] and [2]. Vestibular models are needed later on in order to quantify the quality of the
different washout filter concepts and for developing an optimal control algorithm.

2 Classical Washout Filter

The most widely used filter scheme is the classical washout filter, see [4, 5]. Signal adaption is divided into the translational
and rotational path, with highpass filtering for simulating transient acceleration and rotation. In order to realize sustaining
acceleration, the lowpass filtered specific force 4 fA is converted to a proportional platform tilting angle for utilizing the
gravitational force. In this application the platform tends to drift to the physical constraints, against what a concept to avoid
touching the border restrictions has to be implemented. In comparison to commercial motion simulators, the workspace
volume of the given platform at the Institute for Robotics is a thousandth part.
As a consequence, a concept named dead-zone washout filter was applied, see [6]. Therefore an additional block is imple-
mented in the translational part of the classical washout filter, shown in Fig. 1.
4g

HP 4 f1 4 a1 HP 4 aH I a2 HP I aS I aSDZ 1
4 fA AI4 Filter #2 DZWF I rS
Scale #1 Filter #1 s2
Vestibular
perception model

uA
LP 4 f2 LP 4 fL Tilt I ϕ SL Airplane e
Scale #1 Filter #1 Koord. dynamics
uS
Vestibular
WS (s)
perception model
HP 4ω 1 HP 4ω H ϕH
I ϕ̇ HP ϕ SH
I ϕ̇ 1 I ϕ SH
4ω A TI4 Filter #4 I ϕS
Scale #2 Filter #3 s

Fig. 1 Classical washout filter in combination with the dead zone washout filter Fig. 2 Optimal control algorithm

If the calculated simulator acceleration under-runs the humans minimum perceptible acceleration thresholds of 0.28m/s2 , an
acceleration profile to restore the platform to its equilibrium point is used instead of the original acceleration
(
I aS,i |I aS,i | > athreshold
I aSDZ ,i = , i = x, y, z.
I ares,i other

∗ Corresponding author: e-mail: klemens.springer@jku.at, Phone: +43 732 2468 6509, Fax: +43 732 2468 6492

c 2011 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim

 956 Section 1: Multi-body dynamics

3 Optimal Control Algorithm

4g In contrast to the experimentally adjusted classical washout filter,
4 aA I aA Optimal I aS 1 I rS the optimal control algorithm uses automatically designed filters
4 fA AI4 Filter #1 s2
as result of a minimization problem. This method incorporates a
Optimal
mathematical model of the human vestibular system, mentioned in
I ϕA section 1, and minimizes the sensation error e between the percep-
Filter #2
tion in the simulated aircraft and on the motion platform. In de-
Optimal
veloping this optimal washout filter, the minimization of the cost
Filter #3 function
Z  
Optimal J= eT Qe + xTd Rd xd + uTS RuS dt
I ϕS
Filter #4
Q ≥ 0, R ≥ 0, R > 0 (1)
d
Fig. 3 Block diagram of the optimal control algorithm

has to be calculated. The sensation error e is gained out of the output of the vestibular perception error system with the states
xe . The additional states xd and the input uS are used to constrain the platform displacement and the input itself. The structure
of the problem is illustrated in Fig. 2. This assumes that the same sensation model can be applied for the simulator and the
aircraft pilot. After a transformation of Eq. 1 from a LQR prob-
0.03
ωS,sensβ̇ lem with output weighting to a standard LQR problem, we get the
0.02 ωA,sensβ̇ solution
 
0.01
 xe
Perception in rad/sec


0 uS = − F1 F2 F3  xd  , xn = uA (2)
xn
−0.01
from the optimal control problem with the states xn from the noise
−0.02
system describing the input signals. Taking the Laplacian of the
−0.03 LTI systems
−0.04 −1
xe = (sI − A) B (uS − uA )
−0.05 −1
(3)
−0.06
xd = (sI − Ad ) B d uS
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 into account, the relation of the aircraft input to the simulator input
t in sec
Fig. 4 Comparison of the perception of a roll maneuver be- uS = WS (s)uA (4)
tween simulator and aircraft pilot
is found. The diagonal and the nonzero coupling entries between
the rotational and translational part of the transfer function matrix WS (s) are the analogues to the high- and lowpass filters
from the classical washout filter scheme and are denoted as optimal filter #1 − #4 in Fig. 3.

4 Results and Conclusions

The exemplarily presented results have been obtained with the optimal control algorithm in combination with the dead-
zone washout filter during a curve flight maneuver using the roll axis mainly. As shown in Fig. 4, exact tracking could not
be achieved due to the very conservative boundary restrictions on the Stewart platform built at the Institute for Robotics.
Despite this fact, acceptable simulator behavior is accomplished. Similar results are attained with the classical washout filter
combination. Further enhancements can be made with concepts like acceleration feedback control.

Acknowledgements Support of the present work in the framework of the peer-reviewed Austrian Center of Competence in Mechatronics
(ACCM) is gratefully acknowledged.

References
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NASA Ames Research Center, California 1980.
[3] Zacharias, G.; Motion Cue Models for Pilot-Vehicle Analysis; Control Systems Department, Cambridge, Massachusetts 1977.
[4] Reid, L. D. and Nahon, M. A.; Flight simulation motion-base drive algorithms – Part 1; UTIAS report, Toronto 1985.
[5] Reid, L. D. and Nahon, M. A.; Flight simulation motion-base drive algorithms – Part 2; UTIAS report, Toronto 1986.
[6] Liao, C. and Huang, C. and Chieng, W.; A novel Washout Filter Design for a Six Degree-of-Freedom Motion Simulator; JSME
International Journal, Series C, Vol. 47, No. 2, Taiwan 2004, pp. 626–636.

c 2011 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim

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