Design and Development of Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV) with Spherical Wheels

An unmanned ground vehicle is a mobile robot that moves around without any human, and it is generally remote operated. Its quality of being lightweight and compact makes it highly desirable to be used in missions that involve high levels of risk and danger like surveillance, inspection, reconnaissance. Typical UGVs that consist of two- or four-wheels experience limitations in the maneuverability of the robot. This research is aimed to design and develop a prototype of UGV which is omni-directional. Spherical wheels, introduced as new type of omni-wheels were designed, 3D printed, and the rest of the body was manufactured keeping in mind to keep the robot as lightweight as possible. The wheels had an active rotational component as well as a passive one. Complete calculations and analysis of the wheels were done using ANSYS. A comprehensive outlook on the mobility controls of the UGV was explored and the research concluded with suggestions of materials that could be used for the manufacturing of wheels on an industrial scale to make the UGV robust and able to withstand impacts.