PID controller for a differential drive robot balancing system

Abstract

Abstract Controlling a differential drive robot balancing system is a challenging task since it is highly unstable, non-linear and under-actuated system. This paper proposes a PID controller algorithm to balance a differential drive robot at upright position. The system model derived using Lagrangian method is discussed. The resulting mathematical model of the proposed closed-loop system was simulated. To verify the system performances, the real time experiments have been conducted. An Arduino Uno and an MPU6050 were used as the main controller and the main sensor, respectively. The PID parameters were manually tuned until the desired performance was achieved. From the simulation and the real time experiment results, the proposed method has demonstrated its capability to stabilize robot at upright position.