Title: Using tethered robotics to launch flying and hovering robot agents for tactical airsuperiority in la
1Using tethered robotics to launch flying and
hovering robot agents for tactical
air-superiority in land warfare and
anti-terrorist activities
SPIE2004
Dr. Danny Ratner, A/Prof. Phillip McKerrow -
School of Information Technology and Computer
Science - University of Wollongong Australia
2Inspiration from marine tethered robotics -
creating global X-Y-Z manipulator
3Similarities and differences
- Robot is connected via cable to a stable host
platform - Both are stabilized by gravity
- Both have localized self-maneuverability
- Aerial tethered robot is fully supported by the
cable, while marine robot is almost balanced
self-floating - Air damping much smaller than water damping
4Gravity stabilized sensing head
- Each tethered robot is equipped with a sensing
head that includes mono/stereo vision on pan
tilt unit and additional sensors. - Vision provides
- visual servoing to correct the position of the
robot with respect to images of the
targeted environment, - recognition of specific landmarks for navigating
the robot, and - data to the operator about operational
conditions. - Line of sight is controlled by moving the light
camera against the inertia of the robot
5Concepts - tethered robot as a sensing head
carried by an electric hybrid robotic host
platform capable of hovering and flying
6Concepts -tethered robot equipped with
manipulator carried by an air-ship
7Concepts - tethered robot with a sensing head and
an airfield for robotics agents
8We are exploring a few concepts of robotic agents
capable of flying and hovering in confined
spaces. Agents will use ducted-fan technology
enabling it to collide with walls without
crashing the blades.
9We conducted many experiments with the
DraganFlyer to learn the fesability of robotic
agents launched near the target from a tethered
airfield. A flight simulator and a dynamic model
will be presented by Phillip McKerrow at
ICRA2004.
10Design issues
- Host can move in 6 dof, while robot is
constrained by the cable in the vertical
direction and gravity enables pendulum style
motion on a sector of hemisphere - Main concerns are effect of wind and bumpy air
- Host platform must be stable and much heavier
than robot - Other issues are effect of air damping, cable
stiffness and controlling motion relationship
between host to robot
11Simple model of force control
12Force control considerations
- Movements constraints system degrees of
freedom - X,Y and yaw are controllable like a turtle robot
- Z controlled by host
- Roll pitch are constrained by gravity spring
- Cable provides spring constant - which gives
stability - Active yaw control requires feedback due to lack
of spring constant (compass or gyro) - Design of the propulsion system
- Effect of force application relative to hinge
point - Gravity compensation for motor reaction torque
- Gyroscopic effects during yaw and pitch
13Propulsion configuration a
14Propulsion configuration b
15Mounting the wireless camera on custom made
pantilt unit
16LabVIEW control panel and digital video
17RD project - outdoor prototype
18Titan 4WD outdoor mobile robot to be used to tow
a balloon carrying a tethered robot
19Future plans
- Conduct outdoor experiments of the new tethered
robot by hanging it from a weather balloon and
towing it by the Titan 4WD outdoor mobile robot
over a field - Integrate our ducted-fan based robotic agents
with the tethered robot and test the launching of
the agent into a structure with confined space