Modeling and Simulation of a Three-Wheeled Mobile Robot on Uneven Terrains with Two-Degree-of-Freedom Suspension Mechanisms

A wheeled mobile robot (WMR) will move on an uneven terrain without slip if its torus-shaped wheels tilt in a lateral direction. An independent two degree-of-freedom (DOF) suspension is required to maintain contact with uneven terrain and for lateral tilting. This article deals with the modeling and simulation of a three-wheeled mobile robot with torus-shaped wheels and four novel two-DOF suspension mechanism concepts. Simulations are performed on an uneven terrain for three representative paths—a straight line, a circular, and an ‘S’-shaped path. Simulations show that a novel concept using double four-bar mechanism performs better than the other three concepts.