Rotation-Based Multidirectional Locomotion Method of a Caster-Wheeled Mobile Platform

Abstract

Mobile manipulators, which can move to different locations and perform various tasks at the destination, are attracting attention. In order for mobile manipulators to perform human-like tasks, the mobile platform must be able to move not only in one direction, but also in arbitrary directions. In this study, we have proposed a new multidirectional mobile platform called CRoMop. CRoMop is equipped with three swivel-passive caster wheels and performs multidirectional motion by utilizing rotational motion. Due to the rotation, CRoMop can move indefinitely in any direction while avoiding a singular state. Thus, CRoMop can satisfy the use of ordinary wheels, fewer motors, and multidirectional motion at the same time. To confirm the fundamental effectiveness of the proposed mechanism and locomotion method, experiments were conducted. The result clarified that the CRoMop prototype worked as expected even with feedforward control.