Differential flatness-based motion control of a steer-and-drive omnidirectional mobile robot

This paper presents a point-to-point pose tracking controller design for a steer-and-drive omnidirectional mobile robot. A method is proposed for smooth position and orientation tracking of the omnidirectional mobile platform based on a differential flatness approach. This method is full-state controllable, which can plan a smooth trajectory for the mobile platform to cope with the problem of limited working space in an indoor environment. It features exploiting unique features of omnidirectional mobility of the motion platform. Experimental results of a four-wheeled steer-and-drive mobile platform validate the effectiveness of the proposed method.