Differential Drive Analysis of Spherical Magnetic Robot Using Multi-Single Board Computer

Abstract

This paper presents a spherical magnetic robot named 'CE-R1' propelled by an inner drive unit and a magnetic balancing unit rolling without slipping on a plane. A spherical magnetic robot 'CE-R1' consists of two parts as a domed head and a ball-shaped body with contactless and controlled via Bluetooth. A non-holonomic model and wheel-drive locomotion are interested in a spherical mobile robot. Sphere movement is controlled by a differential drive from the inner drive unit inside the sphere. Firstly, the magnetic interaction in a magnetic balancing unit is applied to the connection of a domed head and a ball-shaped body with contactless. Secondly, a differential drive of proposed spherical magnetic robot 'CE-R1' with an inner drive unit inside is derived and deployed with the multi-single computer board controller. Hardware of prototype 'CE-R1' is designed including the multi-single board computer for wireless charger, voice recognition system and controlling the 'CE-R1'. The explicit experiments of proposed 'CE-R1' spherical magnetic robot are tested as a faculty-assistive guide robot controlled through application at the faculty lobby area in the Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University. This work proposed here is a step towards the overall goal of an autonomous spherical mobile robot.