Development of Kinematic and Dynamic Model of an Omnidirectional Four Mecanum Wheeled Robot

Abstract This paper focuses on the development of the kinematics and dynamics model of an omnidirectional four Mecanum wheeled robot for the purposes of motion control. The kinematic model is implemented to calculate the RPM of each wheel and control the motors. The model allows for the evaluation of drift of the body and a feedback loop implemented in conjunction with odometry to adjust the trajectory of the robotic platform. This considers route length, pose efficiency, necessity of acceleration, and smoothness of motion. This analysis focuses on the determination of effects from slippage of the roller on the shaft connecting it to a wheel while considering the physical geometry of the robotics platform. In doing so, a more accurate kinematic and dynamics model for an omnidirectional platform is created and simulation is conducted in MATLAB/Simulink environment. The inverse kinematics is also presented in this paper. The authors illustrate the validity of this extensive model through experimental and analytical position tracking of the physical system in eight planar directions: forward/backward, laterally, and along 45-degree angle, as well as in two rotating directions. The dynamics model can be used to understand the performance of the mobile robot and further be used to design the control algorithm for object avoidance.