This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in ISI Web of Science Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (5) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Iagnemma, K. Articles by Dubowsky, S. Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                   What's this?

Traction Control of Wheeled Robotic Vehicles in Rough Terrain with Application to Planetary Rovers

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA, kdi{at}mit.edu

Steven Dubowsky

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA

Mobile robots are being developed for high-risk missions in rough terrain situations, such as planetary exploration. Here, a rough-terrain control methodology is presented that exploits the actuator redundancy found in multiwheeled mobile robot systems to improve ground traction and reduce power consumption. The algorithm optimizes individual wheel torque based on multiple optimization criteria, which are a function of the local terrain profile. A key element of the method is to be able to include estimates of wheel-terrain contact angles and soil characteristics. A method using an extended Kalman filter is presented for estimating these angles using simple on-board sensors. Simulation and experimental results for a micro-rover traversing challenging terrain demonstrate the effectiveness of the algorithm.

Key Words: control • mobile robots • planetary rovers • rough terrain • wheel-terrain interaction

CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?