Motion Characteristics Analysis of a Mecanum-Wheeled Omnidirectional Mobile Robot on a Slope

Mecanum-wheeled omnidirectional mobile robots (MOMRs) are widely used in the field of industry. However, since the mobility of the Mecanum wheel depends on the free rollers, limitations or undesirable behaviors may occur in the motions of the MOMR, especially when external forces are applied. Therefore, this study investigates the motion characteristics of the MOMR on a slope. First, we focus on the maximum possible acceleration considering the wheel skidding and clarify its relationship with the inclination angle of the slope and the structure of the MOMR. Then, the straight-traveling stability at the acceleration limit is analyzed to evaluate the effect of the resultant motion due to wheel skidding. The results show that the characteristics vary considerably depending on the inclination angle of the slope, and that directional dependences due to the free rollers are observed in the maximum acceleration limit and the straight-traveling stability, which should be considered in the operation of MOMRs.