Microrobotics surveillance: discrete and continuous starbot

摘要

This paper focuses on robotic technologies and operational capabilities of multiscale robots that demonstrate a unique class of Microsystems with the ability to navigate diverse terrains and environments. We introduce two classes of robots which combine multiple locomotion modalities including centimeter scale Discrete and Continuous robots which are referred here by D-Starbot and C-Starbot, respectively. The first generation of the robots were obtained to allow rapid shape reconfiguration and flipping recovery to accomplish tasks such as lowering and raising to dexterously go over and under obstacles, deform to roll over hostile location as well as squeezing through opening smaller than its sizes. The D-Starbot is based on novel mechanisms that allow shape reconfiguration to accomplish tasks such as lowering and raising to go over and under obstacles as well as squeezing through small voids. The CStarbot is a new class of foldable robots that is generally designed to provide a high degree of manufacturability. It consists of flexible structures that are built out of composite laminates with embedded microsystems. The design concept of C-Starbot are suitable for robots that could emulate and combine multiple locomotion modalities such as walking, running, crawling, gliding, clinging, climbing, flipping and jumping. The first generation of C-Starbot has centimeter scale structure consisting of flexible flaps, each being coupled with muscle-like mechanism. Untethered D-Starbot designs are prototyped and tested for multifunctional locomotion capabilities in indoor and outdoor environments. We present foldable mechanism and initial prototypes of C-Starbot capable of hopping and squeezing at different environments. The kinematic performance of flexible robots is thoroughly presented using the large elastic deflection of a single arm which is actuated by pulling force acting at variable angles and under payload and friction forces.