Stability and Traction Optimization of a Reconfigurable Wheel-Legged Robot

Actively articulated locomotion systems such as hybrid wheel-legged vehicles are a possible way to enhance the locomotion performance of an autonomous mobile robot. In this paper, we address the control of the wheel-legged robot Hylos traveling on irregular sloping terrain. The redundancy of such a system is used to optimize both the balance of traction forces and the tipover stability. The general formulation of this optimization problem is presented, and a suboptimal but computationally efficient solution is proposed. Then, an algorithm to control the robot posture, based on a velocity model, is described. Finally, this algorithm is validated through simulations and experiments that show the capabilities of such a redundantly actuated vehicle to enhance its own safety and autonomy in critical environments.