Design and Development of a Dynamically-Balancing Holonomic Robot

Abstract

This paper describes the design, control, and construction of Golem Wing, the first vehicle which both balances dynamically and has entirely holonomic ground movement. A nonstandard linear arrangement of mecanum wheels gives it the load-lifting, performance, and manipulation benefits of a dynamically-balancing platform without the maneuvering difficulties exhibited by previous balancing platforms. We show that the arrangement is capable of holonomic motion, describe a controller that maintains dynamic balance during holonomic motion, and show an implementation of the system in hardware that validate our assertions.