Mobile manipulator stability measurements

Abstract

Mobile manipulators are being marketed for material handling and other tasks. Manufacturers suggest that the stability of the vehicle is best when the onboard loading tapers the centroid to the center of the wheelbase as the payload height increases. Experiments were performed at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) that verify this notion on an Adept Lynx mobile robot with onboard Universal Robots UR5 manipulator. Results show that cantilevered loads near the payload top height cause vehicle instability during navigation that can roll the vehicle and cause off-path navigation. This paper describes the stability experiments and results.