Underactuated control for nonholonomic mobile robots by using double integrator model and invariant manifold theory

In a stabilizing control for nonholonomic mobile robots with two independent driving wheels, a nonholonomic double integrator in the kinematic model is first considered as a controlled object model. Then, a quasi-continuous exponential stabilizing control method is proposed as one of underactuated control methods by using invariant manifold theory. Next, to extend the velocity input control in a kinematic level to the torque input control in a dynamical level, an extended nonholonomic double integrator consisting of the kinematic and dynamical models is treated as a controlled object model. A quasi-continuous exponential stabilizing controller is further derived for such an extended model by using the same way as used in the kinematic level control. The effectiveness of the present method is proved with some demonstrative simulations.