Mathematical modelling and control of a two-wheeled PUMA-like vehicle

Abstract

This paper presents mathematical modelling and control of a two-wheeled single-seat vehicle. The design of the vehicle is inspired by the Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility (PUMA) vehicle developed by General Motors® in collaboration with Segway®. The body of the vehicle is designed to have two main parts. The vehicle is activated using three motors; a linear motor to activate the upper part in a sliding mode and two DC motors activating the vehicle while moving forward/backward and/or manoeuvring. Two stages proportional-integral-derivative (PID) control schemes are designed and implemented on the system models. The state space model of the vehicle is derived from the linearized equations. Controller based on the Linear Quadratic Regulator (LQR) and the pole placement techniques are developed and implemented. Further investigation of the robustness of the developed LQR and the pole placement techniques is emphasized through various experiments using an applied impact load on the vehicle.