Abstract: The wind-driven spherical robot is a novel mobile robot which can be used to explore dangerous and complex terrains inaccessible to human beings. Thus this robot possesses some unique advantages in the environment exploration fields. This article first considers the case in which the robot is slipping or not at the point of contact, and uses the Kane method to establish a bouncing dynamic model of the wind-driven spherical robot. The model provides a direct method for analyzing the robot’s movement after impact. Then, the rolling and sliding conditions are given,and the rolling and sliding dynamic models of the robot based on Newton mechanics are established. Finally, the dynamic models of the motion patterns are combined, and the effect of the stochastic wind in the environment are considered. The movement simulation of the robot is realized. The numerical simulation results reveal the effect of the environment and the structural parameters on the movement performances of the robot.

Key words: spherical robot, wind power, dynamics, environment exploration, motion pattern