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Testbed experiments with wind source showing the lateral force (í µí°¹ í µí± ) induced due to the rotation of the arms around the shoulder yaw joint.
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This paper presents the design and development of a winged aerial robot with bimanual manipulation capabilities, motivated by the current limitations of aerial manipulators based on multirotor platforms in terms of safety and range/endurance. Since the combination of gliding and flapping wings is more energy efficient in forward flight, we propose...
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... Literature review reveals an early interest in insect-size flapping wing micro air vehicles [5], [6], [7], where one of the main challenges is the fabrication of millimeter scale actuators capable of generating flapping frequencies in the range of tens or hundreds of Hz using piezoelectric, thermal, electrostatic, or dielectric actuation principles [5]. However, in last years the focus has moved to the development of birdscale flapping wing robots [8], [9], [10], [11], [4], also known as ornithopters, that provide a certain payload capacity [12] to integrate perception [13], perching [14], [15] and manipulation capabilities [16]. Depending on the way the flapping motion is achieved, two implementations can be identified: continuous rotation brushless motor with small reduction ratio gear stage and rod-crank mechanism [10], [12], and servo-based actuation with higher control capabilities but lower flapping frequencies [8], [17]. ...
This letter is focused on the benchmark evaluation and comparison of the flapping and fixed wing flight modes on an hybrid platform developed for the realization of autonomous inspection operations outdoors. The platform combines the high range and endurance of fixed-wing UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles), with the higher maneuverability and intrinsic safety of flapping wing in the interaction with humans during the hand launch and capture. A unified model of the hybrid platform is derived for both configurations following the Lagrange formulation to express the multi-body dynamics and aerodynamic forces of the flapping wing and the propellers. The proposed control scheme exploits the similarities of both flight modes in the tail actuation and in the generation of thrust either with the flapping wings or the propellers, in such a way that it can be implemented on conventional autopilots, facilitating in this way the adoption of this type of aerial platforms. To evaluate and compare the performance of both modes, a set of benchmark tests and metrics are defined, including the energy efficiency in forward flight, trajectory tracking, hand launch and capture, and accuracy in visual inspection. Experimental results in outdoors validate the developed prototype, identifying the fixed/flapping transitions, and evidencing the higher energy efficiency of the flapping wing mode compared to the fixed wing.
... Therefore, in recent years, more and more researchers have carried out research on the dual-arm aerial manipulator. For example, Suarez et al. [25][26][27][28][29][30] conducted continuous research work on dual-arm aerial manipulators, not only designing a lightweight and compliant dualarm manipulator structure but also conducting tests and verifications applied to power lines and pipelines. For the application of valve rotation, Orsag et al. [31,32] proposed a dual-arm aerial manipulator system with multiple degrees of freedom and conducted the stability study and test verification of the manipulator under the contact force with the environment. ...
It is a challenging task for an aerial manipulator to complete dual-arm cooperative manipulation in an outdoor environment. In this study, a new dual-arm aerial manipulator system with flexible operation is developed. The dual-arm manipulator system is designed for the application of aerial manipulation, and it has the characteristics of low weight, low inertia, and a humanoid arm structure. The arm structure is composed of customized aluminum parts, each manipulator contains four degrees of freedom, similar to the arrangement of human joints, including shoulder yaw, shoulder pitch, elbow pitch, and wrist roll. Next, the workspace of the dual-arm manipulator is simulated and analyzed, and the relevant kinematic and dynamic models are deduced. Finally, through the lift load, accuracy and repeatability, cooperative bimanual manipulation tests on the test bench, and multiple groups of outdoor flight tests, the relevant performance analysis and verification of the dual-arm aerial manipulator system are carried out. The test results evaluate the feasibility of the designed dual-arm aerial manipulator system for outdoor cooperative manipulation.
... Previous surveys on modeling and control of multi-rotor vehicles [54] and aerial manipulators [50], [51], provide a very good baseline for this paper. Here we extend them considering novel and more complex aerial platforms like flapping wing [52], [53], focusing not only on modeling and control methods, but also on teleoperation, perception, and motion planning techniques. ...
... The ERC Advanced Grant GRIFFIN proposes the development of new bio-inspired aerial manipulation systems with the capability to glide, saving energy, flap the wings, perch, fold the wing and manipulate. Reference [53] introduced the concept of winged aerial manipulation robot, combining the manipulation with gliding to reduce the total weight of the aerial robot. ...
This article analyzes the evolution and current trends in aerial robotic manipulation, comprising helicopters, conventional underactuated multirotors, and multidirectional thrust platforms equipped with a wide variety of robotic manipulators capable of physically interacting with the environment. It also covers cooperative aerial manipulation and interconnected actuated multibody designs. The review is completed with developments in teleoperation, perception, and planning. Finally, a new generation of aerial robotic manipulators is presented with our vision of the future.
... Another example of a two degree of freedom ARA can be found in [12], where the designed aerial manipulator is developed for aerial manipulations using a hexarotor. In [13], a winged aerial manipulator of dual two degrees of freedom ARAs is designed for assisting flying and manipulating objects. The main novelty was a new design that supported holding and manipulating objects while in horizontal flight. ...
Aerial Robot Arms (ARAs) enable aerial drones to interact and influence objects in various environments. Traditional ARA controllers need the availability of a high-precision model to avoid high control chattering. Furthermore, in practical applications of aerial object manipulation, the payloads that ARAs can handle vary, depending on the nature of the task. The high uncertainties due to modeling errors and an unknown payload are inversely proportional to the stability of ARAs. To address the issue of stability, a new adaptive robust controller, based on the Radial Basis Function (RBF) neural network, is proposed. A three-tier approach is also followed. Firstly, a detailed new model for the ARA is derived using the Lagrange-d'Alembert principle. Secondly, an adaptive robust controller, based on a sliding mode, is designed to manipulate the problem of uncertainties, including modeling errors. Last, a higher stability controller, based on the RBF neu-ral network, is implemented with the adaptive robust controller to stabilize the ARAs, avoiding modeling errors and unknown payload issues. The novelty of the proposed design is that it takes into account high nonlinearities, coupling control loops, high modeling errors, and disturbances due to payloads and environmental conditions. The model was evaluated by the simulation of a case study that includes the two proposed controllers and ARA trajectory tracking. The simulation results show the validation and notability of the presented control algorithm.
... A tail was also designed for a Two-Wheg Robot to assist it with climbing [11]. Suarez et al. also utilized a small scale dual arm and one degree-of-freedom tail to control an aerial robot for flying and guilding [12]. In a recent study, Heim et al. found that a long and lightweight active tail could be more effective and simplify body-pitch control as compared to other tail models with the same moment of inertia [13,14]. ...
... The CoM of both the biped robot and tail respect to base frame is l CoM . After receiving X ZMP from the estimator, the maximum virtual torque that can be applied to the robot while keeping the robot marginally stable can be computed in Equation (12) as follows: ...
This paper presents the design of a four degree-of-freedom (DoF) spatial tail and demonstrates the dynamic stabilization of a bipedal robotic platform through a hardware-in-loop simulation. The proposed tail design features three active revolute joints with an active prismatic joint, the latter of which provides a variable moment of inertia. Real-time experimental results validate the derived mathematical model when compared to simulated reactive moment results, both obtained while executing a pre-determined trajectory. A 4-DoF tail prototype was constructed and the tail dynamics, in terms of reactive force and moments, were validated using a 6-axis load cell. The paper also presents a case study where a zero moment point (ZMP) placement-based trajectory planner, along with a model-based controller, was developed in order for the tail to stabilize a simulated unstable biped robot. The case study also demonstrates the capability of the motion planner and controller in reducing the system’s kinetic energy during periods of instability by maintaining ZMP within the support polygon of the host biped robot. Both experimental and simulation results show an improvement in the tail-generated reactive moments for robot stabilization through the inclusion of prismatic motion while executing complex trajectories.
... All of these achievements have been possible thanks to the additional manipulation capabilities added to standard UAVs providing them with the ability to interact with the environment. In the current GRIFFIN European project under funding scheme ERC Advanced Grant [3], we move a step forward in the development of aerial vehicles with manipulation capabilities, moving from multirotor platforms to bio-inspired aerial locomotion ones with flapping wings [4]. Thus, although electric-powered multirotor platforms have been demonstrated to be very efficient for manipulation, unfortunately they still suffer some technology deficiencies e.g., the well-known relatively short flight missions of about few minutes and other inherent limitations when interacting within the proximity of people like noise and hazard situations. ...
... The limited payload capacity of the flapping-wing platforms motivated the design of a small-scale compliant dual arm [12] whose weight is one order of magnitude lower compared to the arms typically integrated in multirotor platforms. Later, we introduced the concept of winged aerial manipulation robot [4] with the aim to reduce the total weight, using the robotic arms with a double functionality, for manipulating and as flapping wings. Each phase is being investigated separately due to the novelty of aerial robots with flapping wings. ...
Nature exhibits many examples of birds, insects and flying mammals with flapping wings and limbs offering some functionalities. Although in robotics, there are some examples of flying robots with wings, it has not been yet a goal to add to them some manipulation-like capabilities, similar to ones that are exhibited on birds. The flying robot (ornithopter) that we propose improves the existent aerial manipulators based on multirotor platforms in terms of longer flight duration of missions and safety in proximity to humans. Moreover, the manipulation capabilities allows them to perch in inaccessible places and perform some tasks with the body perched. This work presents a first prototype of lightweight manipulator to be mounted to an ornithopter and a new control methodology to balance them while they are perched and following a desired path with the end effector imitating their beaks. This allows for several possible applications, such as contact inspection following a path with an ultrasonic sensor mounted in the end effector. The manipulator prototype imitates birds with two-link legs and a body link with an actuated limb, where the links are all active except for the first passive one with a grabbing mechanism in its base, imitating a claw. Unlike standard manipulators, the lightweight requirement limits the frame size and makes it necessary to use micro motors. Successful experimental results with this prototype are reported.
... Fig. 9 shows in more detail the developed micro servo, comprising the three polymer frame parts (the bearing and the cases), the Murata SV01-A potentiometer used to measure the rotation angle, the Pololu micro metal gear motor 250:1, and the microcontroller board. The actuator, weighing 25 grams, with a size of 22 × 22 × 35 mm, provides a maximum torque around 0.2 Nm with a maximum speed of 300 deg/s [41]. Linear guide (igus) 2 120 ...
... The rolling base has two servos, the speed servo and the direction servo, using a STM32 microcontroller board to interface them with the Raspberry Pi 3B+ through an USART interface. The robotic manipulator contains two groups of servos: three Herkulex DRS-0101 actuators used for end-effector positioning, and the customized micro servos of the linear guide and the wrist joints [41]. Both groups are connected in daisy chain to the RPi through the respective USART interfaces. ...
... The TCP position error, ் , obtained from the position reference and the current TCP position given by Eq. (8), is taken as input by the Collision Detector block, which monitors the position error to detect and react against unexpected collisions with the pipe array, protecting in this way the actuators. A similar procedure is applied for the wrist actuators, since the customized microservos also implement an embedded position controller [41]. ...
This paper considers the inspection by contact of long arrays of pipe structures in hard-to-reach places, typical of chemical plants or oil and gas industries, presenting the design of a hybrid rolling-aerial platform capable of landing and moving along the pipes without wasting energy in the propellers during the inspection. The presented robot overcomes the limitation in terms of operation time and positioning accuracy in the application of flying robots to industrial inspection and maintenance tasks. The robot consists of a hexarotor platform integrating a rolling base with velocity and direction control, and a 5-DOF (degree of freedom) robotic arm supported by a 1-DOF linear guide system that facilitates the deployment of the arm in the array of pipes to inspect their contour once the platform has landed. Given a set of points to be inspected in different arrays of pipes, the path of the multirotor and the rolling platform is planned with a hybrid RRT* (Rapidly-exploring Random Tree) based algorithm that minimizes the energy consumption. The performance of the system is evaluated in an illustrative outdoor scenario with two arrays of pipes, using a laser tracking system to measure the position of the robot from the ground control station.
Previous studies on the clap–fling mechanism have predominantly focused on the initial downward and forward phases of flight in miniature insects, either during hovering or forward flight. However, this study presents the first comprehensive kinematic data of Coccinella septempunctata during climbing flight. It reveals, for the first time, that a clap-and-fling mechanism occurs during the initial upward and backward phase of the hind wings’ motion. This discovery addresses the previously limited understanding of the clap-and-fling mechanism by demonstrating that, during the clap motion, the leading edges of beetle’s wings come into proximity to form a figure-eight shape before rotating around their trailing edge to open into a “V” shape. By employing numerical solutions to solve Navier–Stokes (N-S) equations, we simulated both single hind wings’ and double hind wings’ aerodynamic conditions. Our findings demonstrate that this fling mechanism not only significantly enhances the lift coefficient by approximately 9.65% but also reduces the drag coefficient by about 1.7%, indicating an extension of the applicability range of this clap-and-fling mechanism beyond minute insect flight. Consequently, these insights into insect flight mechanics deepen our understanding of their biological characteristics and inspire advancements in robotics and biomimetics.
