Development and Motion Control of the All Direction Steering-Type Mobile Robot. 1st Report. A Concept of Spherical Shaped Robot, Roll and Running Control.

Abstract

The authors developed a new type of mobile robot which had a spherical wheel, an arch-shaped body and motion controlling mechanisms installed inside the wheel. The robot can travel every direction and perform unique actions by virtue of its spherical wheel and motion controlling mechanisms. We call this spherical robot's controlling system IWBS (Inner Wheel Balancing System). The robot is inherently of a stable structure because of its large radius of the wheel and low positioned center of gravity. However, if a load is applied on the top of the body, the robot become unstable. Therefore, the robot is of a quasi-stabled structure. The compound gravity center control of the IWBS enabled this quasi-stabled robot to be controlled not only its postural stability but also every directional locomotion. This paper describes a development concept and mechanisms of the robot, computer simulation performed on the personal computer and experimental results of the robot fabricated concerning to the roll inclination control, running straight and along the S-shaped path control. By applying the learning control method proposed here, we have achieved the intelligent roll inclination control of the robot. It is expected that the robot can become one of the next generation robots for industrial as well as for personal use by developing its capabilities.