Abstract
Modular robots are capable of forming primitive shapes such as lattice and chain structures with the additional flexibility of distributed sensing. The biomimetic structures developed using such modular units provides ease of replacement and reconfiguration in co-ordinated structures, transportation etc. in real life scenarios. Though the research in the employment of modular robotic units in formation of biological organisms is in the nascent stage, modular robotic units are already capable of forming such sophisticated structures. The modular robotic designs proposed so far in modular robotics research vary significantly in external structures, sensor-actuator mechanisms interfaces for docking and undocking, techniques for providing mobility, coordinated structures, locomotions etc. and each robotic design attempted to address various challenges faced in the domain of modular robotics by employing different strategies. This paper presents a novel modular wheeled robotic design - HexaMob facilitating four degrees of freedom (2 degrees for mobility and 2 degrees for structural reconfiguration) on a single module with minimal usage of sensor-actuator assemblies. The crucial features of modular robotics such as back-driving restriction, docking, and navigation are addressed in the process of HexaMob design. The proposed docking mechanism is enabled using vision sensor, enhancing the capabilities in docking as well as navigation in co-ordinated structures such as humanoid robots.
Highlights
Robotics is a rigorously researched domain for the development of automation technologies necessary for consumer and commercial requirements and this research is gaining prominence due to unique features facilitated by modular designs such as reconfigurability, higher reusability, low maintenance costs, numerous applications, and adaptability
The HexaMob robotic module detailed in this paper is a hybrid design with four degrees of freedom (2 degrees for mobility and 2 degrees for structural reconfiguration)
A comparison of a number of modular robotic designs equipped with the self-mobility feature is listed in Tables 2 and 3
Summary
Robotics is a rigorously researched domain for the development of automation technologies necessary for consumer and commercial requirements and this research is gaining prominence due to unique features facilitated by modular designs such as reconfigurability, higher reusability, low maintenance costs, numerous applications, and adaptability. The research in modular robotics attempts to address these constraints by utilizing homogeneous robotic units with limited capabilities for the formation of coordinated structures [1,2]. The research in modular robotics is conventionally categorized using various parameters/features facilitated by individual robotic units such as structural formation capabilities, locomotion and form-factor. The CEBOT robotic modules are heterogeneous units supporting mobility facilitating autonomous docking with each other for the formation of various lattice, chain, truss and free-form structures. Are capable of forming chain structures designed without self-mobility feature in independent robotic modules. The HexaMob robotic design proposed in this paper is a novel modular robotic design with mobility features capable of forming chain structures and aims at reducing human intervention to further lower levels by the employment of vision sensors. The majority of constraints in modular robotic designs such as autonomous docking and navigation are addressed in the design and details are provided in following sections
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