Abstract
The 12-tetrahedral robot is an addressable reconfigurable technology (ART)-based variable geometry truss mechanism with 26 extensible struts and nine nodes arranged in a tetrahedral mesh. The robot has the capability of configuring its shape to adapt to environmental requirements, which makes it suitable for space exploration. This paper considers the motion planning problem for the robot in terms of gait planning and trajectory planning. First, a gait planning method is developed that limits the forward falling angles to only 25 degrees. Then, according to the given gait, the jerk-bounded method and inverse kinematics are utilized to calculate the trajectories of the nodes and the struts, respectively. A robot system model was built in ADAMS and simulations were conducted to demonstrate the feasibility of the motion planning method.
Highlights
In space exploration, some terrains can be difficult or dangerous for humans to access, yet can provide valuable data for scientific research, e.g, valleys or caves on the surface of Mars
Wheeled robots and legged robots are two types of the most common autonomous mechanisms used for terrestrial exploration
Wheeled robots can adapt to relatively smooth terrains, but is inefficient in passing over rough terrains [1]
Summary
Some terrains can be difficult or dangerous for humans to access, yet can provide valuable data for scientific research, e.g, valleys or caves on the surface of Mars. In order to increase the capability of passing over complex terrains, researchers propose combining legged, wheeled, crawler and other robots into a novel mobile robot, e.g., a wheeled-crawler robot Another approach is to design a mechanism that can reconfigure itself to adapt to different terrains such as the reconfigurable robot and metamorphic robot. The tetrahedral rolling robot proposed by NASA is an addressable, reconfigurable technology (ART)-based variable geome‐ try truss mechanism that consists of nodes and extensi‐ ble struts arranged in a tetrahedral mesh This type of robot can reconfigure its shape to adapt to different types of terrain environments, which makes it very suitable for irregular and complex environments encountered in space exploration. In [11, 12], the authors designed a prototype for the single tetrahedral robot, proposed a motion planning strategy and presented the toppling condition for the robot based on its kinematics. Tshteisetpype of robot has an and adnedecpancraachteiervse, aguvalrliieetsy,ocfagnayitos,nes.g,.,ewtca.lking, rolling over and climbing, which imp across extreme terrain topographies such as steep and deep craters, gullies, canyons,
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