This paper details the design and development of a robotic joint actuator that combines a frameless BLDC motor with a two-stage stepped planetary gear reducer, as well as a custom-built controller for precise position control. The rotor is physically coupled to a hollow sun gear shaft to facilitate internal cable routing, and the actuator features a high-resolution absolute encoder utilizing the BiSS-C protocol. The controller includes a 3-phase H-bridge driver, differential signal conversion for encoder communication, and a CAN interface for host communication. Position control is achieved through a PID loop operating at 1 kHz. A prototype actuator and controller have been fabricated, and step response tests were conducted. Experimental results indicate stable and accurate tracking of position commands, with a short settling time of 0.04773 seconds. These findings confirm the effectiveness of the integrated actuator system for robotic joint applications. Future work will focus on optimizing internal cable space and implementing sensorless control algorithms.

A ball-on-plate system is a mechanical control system for measuring the position of a ball placed on a touch panel and controlling the ball to move to a desired position. This system has been applied to a shelf cart. A hole was made in the center of the top shelf of the cart with a ball-on-plate system installed, allowing objects to be placed on the plate. The cart equipped with this system is named a "level-maintaining shelf cart". When external disturbances act on the cart, the ball- on-plate system ensures that the plate remains level, preventing objects on the plate from sliding or toppling. However, when the cart passes over uneven surfaces or experiences disturbances with acceleration beyond the system's allowable limits, the ball on the touch panel may detach, resulting in an "air ball" state, in which the system cannot measure the position of the ball, leading to instability. To address the air ball state, a compensator consisting of a closed-loop observer and full-state feedback for the ball-on-plate system is designed. A model for the closed-loop observer was created by modeling the ball-on-plate system. Experiments confirmed that the system could maintain stable control even in an air ball state.

The Ball-on-Plate Balancing System is a system where the base is fixed to the ground, and the plate is connected to the base through a spherical joint and can rotate in two directions (X-axis roll rotation, Y-axis pitch rotation). Two rotational joints are located on the orthogonal coordinate line of the base, and these joints are connected to the operational links of a 4-bar linkage, creating rotation of the plate around the spherical joint. The goal of this system is to prevent a ball placed on the plate from rolling off and maintain it at the center of the plate. A 17-inch touch panel attached to the plate allows the orthogonal coordinates of a ball placed on the plate to be measured. A cross-shaped frame was designed to secure the touch panel, and a custom universal joint was centered in this frame. The Ball-on-Plate Balancing System was integrated into a cart table, and a horizontal maintenance system was designed to keep the table level. Experiments confirmed the ability of the table to maintain its horizontal position during movements on uneven surfaces and sudden starts or stops.