Title :
Next generation rope-like robot for in-space inspection
Author :
Tonapi, Manas M. ; Godage, Isuru S. ; Walker, Ian D.
Author_Institution :
Dept. of Electr. & Comput. Eng., Clemson Univ., Clemson, SC, USA
Abstract :
Design of continuum robots, i.e. robots with continuous backbones, has been an active area of research in robotics for minimally invasive surgery, search and rescue, object manipulation, etc. Along the same lines, NASA developed “Tendril”, the first long and thin continuum robot of its kind, intended for in-space inspection applications. In this paper, we describe and discuss the key disadvantages of state of the art mechanical design producing undesirable effects during operation. We then provide the specifics of a new, next generation, thin rope-like robot with a modified mechanical design for better performance having key features like controllable bending along its entire length, local compression and potentially smaller actuation package.
Keywords :
aerospace robotics; continuum mechanics; design engineering; inspection; mobile robots; Tendril; compression; continuum robot; controllable bending; in-space inspection; mechanical design; minimally invasive surgery; next generation rope-like robot; object manipulation; search and rescue; NASA; Robots; Tendons;
Conference_Titel :
Aerospace Conference, 2014 IEEE
Conference_Location :
Big Sky, MT
Print_ISBN :
978-1-4799-5582-4
DOI :
10.1109/AERO.2014.6836183