MDPI - Publisher of Open Access Journals

24 pages, 10358 KB

Open AccessArticle

Design and Control of a Reconfigurable Robot with Rolling and Flying Locomotion

by Qing Chang, Biao Yu, Hongwei Ji, Haifeng Li, Tiantian Yuan, Xiangyun Zhao, Hongsheng Ren and Jinhao Zhan

Actuators 2024, 13(1), 27; https://doi.org/10.3390/act13010027 - 9 Jan 2024

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2629

Abstract

Given the continual rise in mission diversity and environmental complexity, the adept integration of a robot’s aerial and terrestrial locomotion modes to address diverse application scenarios has evolved into a formidable challenge. In this paper, we design a reconfigurable airframe robot endowed with the dual functionalities of rolling and flying. This innovative design not only ensures a lightweight structure but also incorporates morphing capabilities facilitated by a slider-crank mechanism. Subsequently, a land-to-air transformation strategy for the robot is introduced, achieved through the coordinated movement of the robotic arm and the servo motor. To ensure stable control of the robot amid external wind disturbances, we leverage the collaboration between a Generative Adversarial Network (GAN)and a Nonlinear Model Predictive Control (NMPC) controller. After the wind force magnitude is predicted through the neural network, the robot’s adeptness in flexible trajectory tracking is verified. Under simulated wind conditions of 12.1 m/s, the trajectory error consistently remains within the range of 10–15 cm, affirming the effectiveness of this control method. Full article

(This article belongs to the Section Actuators for Robotics)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

13 pages, 4212 KB

Open AccessArticle

Orientation Control System: Enhancing Aerial Maneuvers for Quadruped Robots

by Francesco Roscia, Andrea Cumerlotti, Andrea Del Prete, Claudio Semini and Michele Focchi

Sensors 2023, 23(3), 1234; https://doi.org/10.3390/s23031234 - 20 Jan 2023

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 6349

Abstract

For legged robots, aerial motions are the only option to overpass obstacles that cannot be circumvented with standard locomotion gaits. In these cases, the robot must perform a leap to either jump onto the obstacle or fly over it. However, these movements represent a challenge, because, during the flight phase, the Center of Mass (CoM) cannot be controlled, and there is limited controllability over the orientation of the robot. This paper focuses on the latter issue and proposes an Orientation Control System (OCS), consisting of two rotating and actuated masses (flywheels or reaction wheels), to gain control authority on the orientation of the robot. Due to the conservation of angular momentum, the rotational velocity if the robot can be adjusted to steer the robot’s orientation, even when the robot has no contact with the ground. The axes of rotation of the flywheels are designed to be incident, leading to a compact orientation control system that is capable of controlling both roll and pitch angles, considering the different moments of inertia in the two directions. The concept was tested by means of simulations on the robot Solo12. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Intelligent Systems and Robotics)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

Search Results (2)

Further Information

Guidelines

MDPI Initiatives

Follow MDPI

Saved Queries

Search Filter Reset All

Years

Feature Papers

Subjects

Journals

Article Types

Countries / Regions

Search Results (2)

Further Information

Guidelines

MDPI Initiatives

Follow MDPI