Configuration Evaluation, Selection and Transformation Planning of a Mobile Robot with Variable Configurations

To improve the adaptability of mobile robots to the environment, a method of configuration evaluation, selection and transformation planning for a kind of mobile robots with variable chassis configuration, wheel distance and wheel steering direction is proposed.The method evaluates the mobility and stability of the robot under different configurations by taking the radius required for turning, the passing width and the stability angle as indexes.Then, a weighted multi-objective model is constructed to select the configuration matching the environmental characteristics from the configuration set.Finally, the transformation planning between any two configurations is converted into a network path search problem to solve the transformation path with the least energy consumption.The rationality and effectiveness of the proposed indexes, and the method of configuration selection and transformation path planning are finally verified by experiments.The results can provide guidance or reference for the design, analysis and motion planning of such kind of wheeled mobile robots with variable configurations.