  Path following controllers make the output of a control system approach and
traverse a pre-specified path with no apriori time parametrization. In this
paper we present a method for path following control design applicable to
framed curves generated by splines in the workspace of kinematically redundant
mechanical systems. The class of admissible paths includes self-intersecting
curves. Kinematic redundancies are resolved by designing controllers that solve
a suitably defined constrained quadratic optimization problem. By employing
partial feedback linearization, the proposed path following controllers have a
clear physical meaning. The approach is experimentally verified on a
4-degree-of-freedom (4-DOF) manipulator with a combination of revolute and
linear actuated links and significant model uncertainty.
