Interaction analysis and posture optimization for a reconfigurable tracked mobile modular manipulator negotiating slopes

This paper analyzes track-terrain and vehicle-manipulator interactions and develops posture optimization algorithms for a reconfigurable tracked mobile modular manipulator negotiating slopes. A tracked mobile robot is associated with unavoidable slippage due to the fact that there are infinite number of contact points between the tracks and the terrain. Furthermore, the reconfiguration of the tracked mobile robot, motion of the onboard manipulator, as well as the centrifugal forces give rise to transfer of load distribution, complicating track-terrain interactions. For a tracked mobile manipulator negotiating slopes, posture optimization is essential for enhancing the traction performance, improving the efficiency of power consumption and avoiding tip-over instabilities. In this paper, track-terrain and vehicle-manipulator interactions are analyzed for a reconfigurable tracked mobile modular manipulator negotiating slopes, and a real-time posture optimization algorithm is developed by online reconfiguring the tracked mobile platform or adjusting motion of the onboard manipulator. The effectiveness of the developed algorithms has been verified by simulations and experiments.