Trajectory Tracking Control of Wheeled Mobile Manipulators With Joint Flexibility via Virtual Decomposition Approach

Wheeled mobile manipulators (WMMs) involving a wheeled mobile platform and a serial manipulator are finding increasing applications in diverse fields, creating new challenges in performing high-precision operations in a spacious workspace. WMMs are challenging to control due to uncertainties in system parameters, coupled dynamics, and external disturbances, which make stability guarantees difficult. This paper proposes a virtual decomposition control (VDC)-based trajectory tracking controller for WMMs, addressing joint flexibility, external disturbances, etc. The proposed method uses a VDC-based iterative approach to manage the complex coupled dynamics and employs a separate adaptive controller to handle joint flexibility. The robotic system’s stability is validated using the specific features of VDC (proof of each subsystem’s virtual stability) according to the Lyapunov stability theory. The advantages and effectiveness of the proposed method are demonstrated through experiments.Note to Practitioners—This paper addresses the challenges faced in controlling WMMs, which are becoming increasingly common in various industrial and service applications due to their ability to perform tasks in large and dynamic environments. The coupling between the wheeled platform and the manipulator, as well as uncertainties in system parameters such as joint flexibility and external disturbances, make precise trajectory tracking difficult. To address these challenges, this paper presents a control approach based on VDC, which breaks down the complex system into manageable subsystems and ensures stability for each part individually. The control strategy also incorporates adaptive control to handle joint flexibility and unpredictable disturbances. The stability of the system is rigorously proven through Lyapunov theory, ensuring robust performance under real-world conditions. Practitioners working on autonomous mobile robots equipped with manipulators may find this approach useful for improving trajectory tracking performance in uncertain and dynamic environments. However, the practical implementation of this method will require careful tuning of controller parameters and real-time computational capabilities to ensure seamless operation in real applications.