Modelling and control of the steering system for a novel eight-wheel gantry vehicle

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Volume Title

School of Electrical Engineering | Master's thesis

Authors

Date

2025-11-19

Department

Major/Subject

Control, Robotics and Autonomous Systems

Mcode

Degree programme

Master's Programme in Automation and Electrical Engineering
Automaation ja sähkötekniikan maisteriohjelma
Magisterprogrammet i automation och elektroteknik

Language

en

Pages

93

Series

Abstract

This thesis presents a modelling and control method for a novel eight-wheel gantry vehicle using a differential speed steering approach. A generalised kinematic model was developed to describe the vehicle’s motion, considering non-holonomic rolling constraints and the absence of conventional steering actuators. Each wheel is independently driven, and steering is achieved by applying calculated speed differences between paired wheels of a bogie. The mechanical model of the vehicle was implemented in MATLAB Simscape Multibody, while a kinematic controller and a nonlinear model predictive controller (NMPC) were designed in MATLAB Simulink. Simulations were used to evaluate the steering performance, path tracking accuracy, and robustness under disturbances and delays. The results demonstrate that the proposed steering and control architecture enables smooth and accurate low-speed manoeuvring, confirming the feasibility of the proposed differential speed steering for complex multi-bogie vehicles.

Description

Supervisor

Deka, Shankar

Keywords

differential steering, kinematic model, gantry vehicle, NMPC, path tracking, simulation

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Citation

Permanent link to this item

https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:aalto-202601071104

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[dipl] Sähkötekniikan korkeakoulu / ELEC