Search Results (5)

In response to the requirements of large-scale space in-orbit assembly and the special environment of low gravity in space, this paper proposes a small robot structure with the integration of assembly, connection, and vibration reduction functionalities. Each robot consists of a body and three composite mechanical arms-legs, which can dock and transfer assembly units with the transport spacecraft unit, and also crawl along the edge truss of the assembly unit to a designated location to complete in-orbit assembly while ensuring precision. A theoretical model of robot motion was established for simulation studies, and in the research process, the vibration of the assembly unit was studied, and preliminary adjustments were made to address the vibration issue. The results show that this structure is feasible for in-orbit assembly schemes and has good adjustment ability for flexible vibration. Full article

External vibration, shock, unbalanced torque and other uncertain disturbances are mainly transmitted to the motor rotor through the bearing friction. To restrain the uncertain friction disturbances and improve the speed stability of a permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM), an optimized active disturbance rejection control (ADRC) algorithm is proposed in this study. Firstly, an auxiliary model of friction and a reduced-order processing method are introduced into extended state observation (ESO) to reduce the burden of single ESO and promote the compensation accuracy of disturbances. In addition, a supervisory radial basis function (SRBF) is employed to supervise and promote the error elimination efficiency of the nonlinear state error feedback rate (NLSEF). The hybrid control algorithm makes up for the deficiency of typical ADRC through the fusion of multiple control quantities. Simulation and experimental results show that the proposed algorithm has strong anti-disturbance performance and effectively solves the problem of low-speed crawling. Full article

Over the last decade, many bio-inspired crawling robots have been proposed by adopting the principle of two-anchor crawling or anisotropic friction-based vibrational crawling. However, these robots are complicated in structure and vulnerable to contamination, which seriously limits their practical application. Therefore, a novel vibro-impact crawling robot driven by a dielectric elastomer actuator (DEA) is proposed in this paper, which attempts to address the limitations of the existing crawling robots. The novelty of the proposed vibro-impact robot lies in the elimination of anchoring mechanisms or tilted bristles in conventional crawling robots, hence reducing the complexity of manufacturing and improving adaptability. A comprehensive experimental approach was adopted to characterize the performance of the robot. First, the dynamic response of the DEA-impact constraint system was characterized in experiments. Second, the performance of the robot was extensively studied and the fundamental mechanisms of the vibro-impact crawling locomotion were analyzed. In addition, effects of several key parameters on the robot’s velocity were investigated. It is demonstrated that our robot can realize bidirectional motion (both forward and backward) by simple tuning of the key control parameters. The robot demonstrates a maximum forward velocity of 21.4 mm/s (equivalent to 0.71 body-length/s), a backward velocity of 16.9 mm/s, and a load carrying capacity of 9.5 g (equivalent to its own weight). The outcomes of this paper can offer guidelines for high-performance crawling robot designs, and have potential applications in industrial pipeline inspections, capsule endoscopes, and disaster rescues. Full article

A 1:25 scale physical model test was employed to study the plane gate vibration and holding force under the conditions of the fixed gate opening and closing process, respectively. We paid more attention to the characteristics of the gate vibration, holding force and the failure of gate-closing in closing process. The correlation between gate vibration and holding force was further examined. The results show that vertical vibration is weaker than the lateral and horizontal vibrations in fixed gate opening and is stronger than the lateral and vertical vibrations in closing process. Gate vertical vibration is self-excited vibration with a frequency of 7–14 Hz. Besides, crawl vibration in closing process is related to the upstream water depth. The higher the water level is, the earlier the crawl vibration appears. After the crawl stage, plane gate stops motion at a certain distance from the chamber floor and then the failure of gate-closing happens. Finally, gate vibration in three directions is significantly correlated with the holding force. In closing process, holding force has positive correlation with the vertical vibration and has negative correlation with the lateral and horizontal vibrations. In the crawl stage, the average of correlation coefficient in lateral, vertical and horizontal direction is −0.723, 0.733 and −0.664, respectively. Thus, the influence of gate vibration on holding force should be taken into consideration in determining the hoists capacity. Full article

Microrobotics is a rapidly growing field with promising applications in microsurgery and microassembly. A challenge in these systems is providing power and control signals to the robot. This project explores crawling robots that are powered and controlled through a global mechanical vibration field. Structures within the robot will cause it to respond to particular frequencies with different motion modalities. A prototype, dubbed the “jitterbot”, was cut out of a 0.75 mm sheet of steel using electric discharge machining (EDM), and has a total footprint of approximately 30 mm × 20 mm in the xy-plane. The “robot” has a tripod body (8 mm × 16 mm) with three small legs, and two suspended masses that are designed for specific resonance frequencies. The robot was tested on a plate that was vibrated vertically at frequencies ranging from 20 to 2,000 Hz. For particular resonant frequencies, the robot moves forward and turns in either a clockwise or counterclockwise direction. Finite element modeling confirms that the mechanism for motion is a rocking mode that is influenced by two arms that are suspended mass springs tuned to different frequencies. This lays the groundwork for further miniaturization. Full article