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Control of Robotic Vehicles with Actively Articulated Suspensions in Rough Terrain

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Abstract

Future robotic vehicles will perform challenging tasks in rough terrain, such as planetary exploration and military missions. Rovers with actively articulated suspensions can improve rough-terrain mobility by repositioning their center of mass. This paper presents a method to control actively articulated suspensions to enhance rover tipover stability. A stability metric is defined using a quasi-static model, and optimized on-line. The method relies on estimation of wheel-terrain contact angles. An algorithm for estimating wheel-terrain contact angles from simple on-board sensors is developed. Simulation and experimental results are presented for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory Sample Return Rover that show the control method yields substantially improved stability in rough-terrain.

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Iagnemma, K., Rzepniewski, A., Dubowsky, S. et al. Control of Robotic Vehicles with Actively Articulated Suspensions in Rough Terrain. Autonomous Robots 14, 5–16 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1020962718637

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1020962718637

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