A reconfigurable mobile robot with 5th wheel

In the paper, a mobile robot, which consists of a conventional four-wheel independent propulsion and individual steering system and a 5^th steerable propulsive wheel, has been presented. The robot is able to achieve multiple prototypes with different wheelbase, wheel stance, clearance, and altitude of center of gravity by reconfiguration, and obtain diversified locomotive modes through the control system based on reliable PC104 and networks for DC motors. A special prototype can also been adopted to get ability of traversing after the robot is flipped over. Furthermore, each of main wheels with high trafficability on sand terrain and bionic features may be implemented by reconfiguration, and the 5^th wheel might increase driving force and measure slipping rate.