A Novel Control System for Intelligent Nursing Robot

With the intensifying global issue of population aging, the number of disabled elderly individuals is increasing, leading to a significant rise in the demand for their daily care. Traditional caregiving methods require substantial human labor, imposing a heavy burden on the families of patients. Intelligent nursing robots can move flexibly indoors and perform various caregiving tasks, meeting the needs of disabled elderly individuals and alleviating the burden on caregivers. This paper proposes an intelligent nursing robot based on a Mecanum wheel mobile platform, which significantly reduces vibrations during navigation and obstacle avoidance through optimized motion control algorithms, thereby improving riding comfort. The robot is equipped with multiple caregiving functions, including navigation, toileting, and bed-chair docking. The control system employs an STM32F407 microcontroller, communicates with the upper computer via WIFI, and integrates PID and sliding mode control algorithms to achieve precise and smooth control of the drive motors. Experimental results demonstrate that the optimized control algorithms significantly reduce the amplitude and frequency of vibrations, enhancing the riding comfort of the intelligent nursing robot. This provides an effective technical solution to the caregiving challenges faced by disabled elderly individuals.