Robotic Arm Control Using dSPACE and MATLAB
Back in 2008, as part of my engineering research at NSIT (now Netaji Subhas University of Technology), I worked on building a prototype robotic arm powered by dSPACE DS1104 and MATLAB/Simulink.
The goal was simple but ambitious: move an end effector precisely, under computer control, and repeat tasks reliably — the very essence of industrial robotics.
Why dSPACE?
dSPACE is widely used in automotive and aerospace industries for rapid control prototyping. By combining its DS1104 Controller Board with MATLAB/Simulink, we could design and simulate control models, then directly run them in real-time without rewriting everything in C code.
How the System Worked
- Hardware: A three-joint robotic arm driven by stepper motors (1.8° per step).
- Controller: dSPACE DS1104 board, interfaced via a breakout panel, providing PWM and DAC outputs.
- Software: MATLAB/Simulink models were built for each motion, then deployed to dSPACE for real-time control.
- Motion: The motors, connected through driver circuits, moved the arm with precise step control, enabling tasks like pick-and-place.
Unlike older robotic teaching methods (e.g., programming each movement manually in QBASIC), this approach let us design, test, and refine robot movements quickly in Simulink and then watch them execute on real hardware.
Why It Mattered
- Demonstrated rapid prototyping of robotic controllers using industry-grade tools.
- Showed how MATLAB models can directly run on embedded DSP hardware with minimal coding effort.
- Highlighted applications beyond labs: from industrial automation to aerospace control systems.
Team & Publication
This project was co-authored with Gurpreet Singh, Himanshu Goel, and Nishank Sethi, under the mentorship of Mrs. Prerna Gaur. It was published in the IEEE-NSIT technical newsletter Yugma (June 2008).
link to the journal - 📄 Link to the journal copy (PDF)
