Motion planning for wheeled mobile robots based on singularity criteria

Abstract

This research presents a motion planning for wheeled mobile robots based on a cost index that assesses the nearness to singularity of forward and inverse kinematic models. The cost index can be used straightforward for many planning techniques (tree graphs, roadmaps, etc.) in order to choose one path among several possible collision-free paths. This path would avoid not only slip and impossible control actions but also high amplification of wheel velocities' error and high values for wheel velocities. To illustrate the applications of the proposed approach it is considered an industrial forklift that is equivalent to the tricycle WMR and several results are shown in a simulated environment. © 2007 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.