Flatness-based control scheme for hardware-in-the-loop simulations of omnidirectional mobile robot

Abstract

Omnidirectional robots offer better maneuverability and a greater degree of freedom over conventional wheel mobile robots. However, the design of their control system remains a challenge. In this study, a real-time simulation system is used to design and develop a hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) simulation platform for an omnidirectional mobile robot using bond graphs and a flatness-based controller. The control input from the simulation model is transferred to the robot hardware through an Arduino microcontroller input board. For feedback to the simulation model, a Kinect-based vision system is used. The developed controller, the Kinect-based vision system, and the HIL configuration are validated in the HIL simulation-based environment. The results confirm that the proposed HIL system can be an efficient tool for verifying the performance of the hardware and simulation designs of flatness-based control systems for omnidirectional mobile robots.