Most wheeled mobile robot (WMR) controllers have been developed based on
nonskidding and nonslipping assumptions. Unfortunately, wheel skidding and
slipping are inevitable due to wheel tire-deformation; consequently, the
stability and performance of these controllers are not guaranteed.
This brief aims to develop a global positioning system (GPS)-based path
following a controller for a car-like wheeled mobile robot in the presence of
wheel skidding and slipping.
The proposed control scheme uses real-time kinematic (RTK)-GPS and other
aiding sensors to measure the WMR's posture, velocities, and perturbations
due to wheel skidding and slipping. These measurements are applied to
compensate the path following errors based on a backstepping controller.
The reported experimental results validate the control scheme. With this
solution, the WMR is able to maneuver with better precision in outdoor
environments in the presence of wheel skidding and slipping.
