Independent traction control for uneven terrain using stick-slip phenomenon: application to a stair climbing robot

Abstract

Mobile robots are being developed for building inspection and security, military reconnaissance, and planetary exploration. In such applications, the robot is expected to encounter rough terrain. In rough terrain, it is important for mobile robots to maintain adequate traction as excessive wheel slip causes the robot to lose mobility or even be trapped. This paper proposes a traction control algorithm that can be independently implemented to each wheel without requiring extra sensors and devices compared with standard velocity control methods. The algorithm estimates the stick-slip of the wheels based on estimation of angular acceleration. Thus, the traction force induced by torque of wheel converses between the maximum static friction and kinetic friction. Simulations and experiments are performed to validate the algorithm. The proposed traction control algorithm yielded a 40.5% reduction of total slip distance and 25.6% reduction of power consumption compared with the standard velocity control method. Furthermore, the algorithm does not require a complex wheel-soil interaction model or optimization of robot kinematics.