Motion control of a three-wheeled omnidirectional mobile robot

This paper describes the software and hardware design used for controlling the motion of a three-wheeled omnidirectional mobile robot. This project is designed and implemented by a group of graduating college students. The hardware design used is patterned from the Palm Pilot Robot Kit, but major differences in speed control for the motors used and the manner of robot control, is realized. The design uses easy-to-find parts commonly available in the market. Motion control of the robot is achieved by using Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) to vary the speed of each drive motor. The robot travels a holonomic, characteristically a curved path which is largely attributed to the different velocities of each wheel. Therefore, a desired path can be accomplished by varying and controlling the speed of each wheel. The mobile robot is designed to be expandable for use by future design groups and will also serve as a reference for further studies of robotic applications.