A Pressure Model and Control System for a Pressurized Pendulum Driven Spherical Robot

Spherical mobile robots are rarely constructed with soft outer shells; even fewer contain hardware to control their inner pressure with compressors and solenoids. This paper presents a specific subsystem of a one-of-a-kind inflatable spherical robot that allows it to control its internal pressure. The design and packaging of the pneumatic outer shell and internal air management system are discussed. A novel dynamic model based on exponential change laws will be introduced to continuously track the change in pressure over time due to leaking. The model's goodness will be investigated when compared against empirical data from the robot and used in tandem with a pressure control scheme. Additional validation tests will empirically characterize the effects of potentially using pressure to influence control over an induced bouncing mode.