Optimizing the performance of a wheeled mobile robots for use in agriculture using a linear-quadratic regulator

Abstract

Use of wheeled mobile robot systems could be crucial in addressing some of the future issues facing agriculture. However, robot systems on wheels are currently unstable and require a control mechanism to increase stability, resulting in much research requirement to develop an appropriate controller algorithm for wheeled mobile robot systems. Proportional, integral, derivative (PID) controllers are currently widely used for this purpose, but the PID approach is frequently inappropriate due to disruptions or fluctuations in parameters. Other control approaches, such as linear-quadratic regulator (LQR) control, can be used to address some of the issues associated with PID controllers. In this study, a kinematic model of a four-wheel skid-steering mobile robot was developed to test the functionality of LQR control. Three scenarios (control cheap, non-zero state expensive; control expensive, non-zero state cheap; only non-zero state expensive) were examined using the characteristics of the wheeled mobile robot. Peak time, settling time, and rising time for cheap control based on these scenarios was found to be 0.1 s, 7.82 s, and 4.39 s, respectively.