Enhancing Indoor Mobility: A Novel Suspended Drive Wheel Mechanism for Differential Drive Mobile Robots

Robotics has become integral across various sectors, revolutionizing processes, and enhancing safety. The integration of robotic technologies has streamlined operations in a faster and more efficient way. Mobile robotics, especially, has seen significant advancements in addressing diverse needs across industries. Applications of mobile robotics are widespread and diverse, including tasks such as warehouse automation, agricultural monitoring and management, search and rescue operations, environmental monitoring, delivery services, and even space exploration. However, the challenge of maintaining stable wheel contact and eliminating wheel slippage persists, particularly evident in indoor environments where differential drive mobile robots (DDMRs) operate. This work addresses this issue by focusing on strategies to mitigate wheel slippage and enhance traction in DDMRs within indoor environments. A novel suspended drive wheel mechanism design for a DDMR platform is introduced in this paper, which is later analyzed using ADAMS multibody simulation on different types of surfaces. The results of the simulations are discussed, and it is evident that the mechanism can establish a firm and stable contact between the ground and the wheel.