Slide-Down Prevention for Wheeled Mobile Robots on Slopes

Wheeled mobile robots on inclined terrain can slide down due to loss of traction and gravity. This type of instability, which is different from tip-over, can provoke uncontrolled motion or get the vehicle stuck. This paper proposes slide-down prevention by real-time computation of a straightforward stability margin for a given ground-wheel friction coefficient. This margin is applied to the case study of Lazaro, a hybrid skid-steer mobile robot with caster-leg mechanism that allows tests with four or five wheel contact points. Experimental results for both ADAMS simulations and the actual vehicle demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Lázaro: a mobile robot with an arm developed to contact with the ground

[EN] This paper aims to describe Lázaro, which is a small mobile robot that has an arm designed especially to provide an additional contact point with the ground that can be used to improve the tipover stability and to overcome obstacles. Specifically, the description of the mechanical structure and electronic components for perception, communication and control is discussed. Subsequently, the operating characteristics of the robot are reviewed in terms of kinematics, control architecture, operating modes and interface. Finally, a description of some performance tests is presented.[ES] Este artículo tiene por objetivo describir a Lázaro, el cual es un pequeño robot móvil que posee un brazo diseñado especialmente para propiciar un punto adicional de contacto con el suelo que puede utilizarse para mejorar la estabilidad al vuelco y superar obstáculos. Específicamente, se aborda la descripción de la estructura mecánica así como los componentes electrónicos destinados a percepción, comunicación y control. Posteriormente, se revisan las características de funcionamiento de este robot, en cuanto a su cinemática, arquitectura de control, modos de operación e interface. Finalmente, se hace una descripción de algunas pruebas de funcionamiento.Este trabajo ha sido financiado parcialmente por el Decanato de Investigación de la Universidad Nacional Experimental del Táchira con el proyecto 01-020-2010. Además, por el proyecto español DPI 2015-65186-R de la CICYT, el proyecto andaluz PE2010 TEP-6101 y la Asociación Universitaria Iberoamericana de Postgrado (AUIP). .García, JM.; Medina, IJ.; Martínez, JL.; García Cerezo, A. (2017). Lázaro: Robot Móvil dotado de Brazo para Contacto con el Suelo. 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