A mobile robot having wheels which maintain contact forces against a
surface even when the mobile robot meets an obstacle on the surface and a
body of the mobile robot is forced up against the obstacle. The mobile
robot easily surmounts the obstacle on the surface, without requiring any
sensors, any specific controller, any specific traveling unit to surmount
over the obstacle, or any specific drive unit to drive the specific
traveling unit. The mobile robot includes the body, the wheels connected
with the body which move arcuately relative to the body, and a wheel
guide unit coupled at a first end to the body and at a second end to a
hub of each of the wheels. The wheel guide unit is contracted when the
body is spaced apart from the surface on which the robot moves. However,
the wheel guide unit expands to allow the wheel to be in contact with the
surface when the body comes into contact with the surface.