Cable-driven hyper-redundant robots have significant advantages in complex confined environments such as nuclear power, due to their large aspect ratio, lightweight and high degree-of-freedom (DOF) redundancy. These robots can achieve accurate end-effector positioning, obstacle avoidance and rear-mounted isolation of electrical components, adapting to the requirements of nuclear power environments. However, their control is confronted with challenges including multi-DOF, strong coupling and cable deformation. Traditional control strategies fail to balance accuracy and response performance, thus limiting their application in the nuclear power field. To address these issues, a joint progressive cable force zero-return control strategy was proposed integrating proportional-integral-derivative control and phased force adjustment, and its performance was verified under full relaxation conditions. Experimental results show that the proposed method can improve the robot's zero-return precision to less than 0.2%, enhance motion stability, and provide a reliable solution for the precise control of special operation robots in nuclear power.