Modular Dynamic Simulation of Wheeled Mobile Robots

This paper presents a modular method for 3D dynamic simulation of wheeled mobile robots (WMRs). Our method extends efficient dynamics algorithms based on spatial vector algebra to accommodate any articulated WMR configuration. In contrast to some alternatives, our method also supports complex, nonlinear wheel-ground contact models. Instead of directly adding contact forces, we solve for them in a novel differential algebraic equation (DAE) formulation. To make this possible we resolve issues of nonlinearity and overconstraint. We demonstrate our method’s flexibility and speed through simulations of two state-of-the-art WMR platforms and wheel-ground contact models. Simulation accuracy is verified in a physical experiment.