Trajectory tracking simulation of a dual-wheeled robot running on slippery surfaces

This paper presents the trajectory tracking simulations of a dual-wheeled robot running on slippery surfaces. The robot has been developed to inspect the surface properties of hydroelectric dams. In such environments, wheel slips often result between the wheel and the dam surface because the wet algae cover the dam surface in places. Although we plan to apply a nonlinear control to the wheel-typed robot with non-holonomic constraints, the control performance is not evident under slippery conditions. Applying the nonlinear control to a dynamic simulator of the robot, we estimate the tracking errors caused by the slippery conditions. Finally, we propose a compensator that is effective for returning to the desired trajectory, and show its usefulness through simulations.