Robust fuzzy logic controller for an intelligent gantry crane system

The use of gantry crane systems for transporting payload is very common in industrial application. However, moving the payload using the crane is not an easy task especially when strict specifications on the swing angle and on the transfer time need to be satisfied. To overcome this problem, an intelligent gantry crane system had been introduced. Fuzzy logic controllers were adopted, designed and implemented for controlling payload position as wen as the swing angle of the gantry crane. In this paper, robustness of the proposed intelligent gantry crane system is evaluated and compared with an automatic gantry crane controlled by the classical PID controllers. The result shows that the intelligent gantry crane system is more robust to parameter variation than the automatic gantry crane system.