Characterization and comparison of rover locomotion performance based on kinematic aspects

Abstract

Evaluation and comparison of locomotion performance of rovers is a difficult, though very important issue. The performance is influenced by a large number of parameters. In this work, three different rovers were analyzed from a kinematic point of view. Based on a kinematic model, the optimal velocities at the actual position were calculated for all wheels and used for characterization of the suspension of the different rovers. Simulation results show significant differences between the rovers and thus, the utility of the chosen metric. It is shown that a substantial reduction of slip can be achieved by integrating kinematics in a model-based velocity controller. © 2008 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.