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Robotica

Table of Contents - July 2012 - Volume 30, Issue 04  

Articles

Feedback control framework for car-like robots using the unicycle controllers

Maciej Michałeka1 c1 and Krzysztof Kozłowskia1

a1 Chair of Control and Systems Engineering, Poznan University of Technology (PUT), Piotrowo 3A, 60-965 Poznań, Poland

SUMMARY

The paper introduces a novel general feedback control framework, which allows applying the motion controllers originally dedicated for the unicycle model to the motion task realization for the car-like kinematics. The concept is formulated for two practically meaningful motorizations: with a front-wheel driven and with a rear-wheel driven. All the three possible steering angle domains for car-like robots—limited and unlimited ones—are treated. Description of the method is complemented by the formal stability analysis of the closed-loop error dynamics. The effectiveness of the method and its limitations have been illustrated by numerous simulations conducted for the three main control tasks, namely, for trajectory tracking, path following, and set-point regulation.

(Accepted June 15 2011)

(Online publication July 25 2011)

KEYWORDS:

  • Wheeled mobile robots;
  • Kinematics;
  • Feedback control

Correspondence:

c1 Corresponding author. E-mail: maciej.michalek@put.poznan.pl