An autonomous cable winding and pay-out system for mobile robots

Abstract

A reliable communication link between a supervisory computer and a mobile robot is essential for achieving various mission goals, especially those related to hazardous and explosive material handling. Coaxial copper and fiber-optic cable proved to be much more reliable than aerial communication links. Aerial communication used with explosive disposal robots allows for possible terrorist interference making cable communication a requirement. The main problem in using a cable is that it has to be carefully paid out and stacked on the winding spool when the vehicle is moving from/towards the operator. Clearly, the cable can not be dragged by the robot since the typical radius of a mobile robot is 200 to 500 m. Therefore, building a winding system capable of performing smooth and neat cable winding and pay-out operation is crucial for the overall robot reliability. Unfortunately, research in the area of mobile robotic systems has traditionally been focused elsewhere. For this reason a winding system was developed conceptually, and a prototype was built. Hundreds of experiments were performed before completing the work. The developed prototype has unique features including: (i) full independence of the robot control/sensorial system, that is, it is autonomous with respect to the vehicle carrying it; (ii) handling different cables without any readjustment of the control system; and (iii) a sophisticated safety system to prevent irregular cable handling. The paper includes the description of the developed prototype, the underlying conceptual ideas, as well as experimental results.