Real-World Validation of Three Tipover Algorithms for Mobile Robots

Abstract

Mobile robot tipover is a concern as it can create dangerous situations for operators and bystanders, cause collateral damage to the surrounding environment, and result in an aborted mission. Algorithms have been developed by others to assess the stability of the robot, and many of these algorithms have been demonstrated using simulated data. In order to verify that these algorithms accurately match real-world behavior we have collected data of a mobile robot tipping over and then compared this data to the stability measures provided by three algorithms: Zero-Moment Point (ZMP), Force-Angle stability measure (FA), and Moment-Height Stability measure (MHS). A small mobile robot platform based on the iRobot PackBot drove a course including ramps and obstacles; an IMU and GPS provided inertial and positional data for the algorithms, and the actual tipover event is determined from video footage of the tests. The average normalized measure at tipover event initiation was found to be 0.665 for ZMP, -0.094 for FA, and 0.023 for MHS, where a value of 1 corresponds to resting stability. Standard deviations were 0.38, 0.84, and 0.67, respectively. The measures show a significant amount of noise, which is likely due to the vibrations caused by movement of the tracks and could be reduced by employing additional filtering during data collection. The preliminary real-world data validates these tipover algorithms as able to assess robot stability, and they can be used as part of a tipover avoidance system.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 01, 2010
Accession Number
ADA522862

Entities

People

  • Aaron B. Burmeister
  • Amin Rahimi
  • David Hooper
  • Kevin Holz
  • Philip R. Roan

Organizations

  • Naval Information Warfare Systems Command

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Autonomy

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Accuracy
  • Algorithms
  • Angular Acceleration
  • Boundaries
  • Collateral Damage
  • Control
  • Control Systems
  • Dynamics
  • Electrical Engineering
  • Environment
  • Explosive Ordnance Disposal
  • Filtration
  • Measurement
  • Platforms
  • Standards
  • Validation
  • Vibration

Readers

  • Computational Modeling and Simulation
  • Computer Vision.
  • Military Logistics and Supply Chain Management

Technology Areas

  • AI & ML
  • AI & ML - Autonomous Systems
  • AI & ML - Bayesian Inference
  • Autonomy
  • Space
  • Space - Spacecraft Maneuvers