Cooperative Distributed Robust Control of Modular Mobile Robots with Bounded Curvature and Velocity

TL;DR

This paper introduces a novel control system for compliant framed modular mobile robots that combines kinematic and nonlinear damping controllers, improving motion control and posture regulation.

Contribution

It presents a new control approach integrating bounded curvature kinematics with nonlinear damping for modular mobile robots, validated through experiments.

Findings

Effective posture regulation demonstrated in experiments

Multiple controller interaction forms analyzed

Enhanced steering capability without extra hardware

Abstract

A novel motion control system for Compliant Framed wheeled Modular Mobile Robots (CFMMR) is studied in this paper. This type of wheeled mobile robot uses rigid axles coupled by compliant frame modules to provide both full suspension and enhanced steering capability without additional hardware. The proposed control system is developed by combining a bounded curvature-based kinematic controller and a nonlinear damping dynamic controller. In particular, multiple forms of controller interaction are examined. A twoaxle scout CFMMR configuration is used to evaluate the different control structures. Experimental results verify efficient motion control of posture regulation.