Mini-WhegS™ climbing steep surfaces with insect-inspired attachment mechanisms

We previously presented a remote-controlled robot, Climbing Mini-Whegstrade, which scales vertical glass walls using passive compliant feet on simple rotating wheel-legs [1]. With a single drive motor, the legs of the robot press the feet against the glass, then gradually peel them away, mimicking the foot motions observed in insects. With feet made of scotch tape, the robot was able to walk on glass walls and ceilings and transition between surfaces intersecting at interior angles. This paper demonstrates that using passively compliant feet on simple rotating wheel-legs a robot can apply adhesive feet, spines, and Velcro in order to climb various steep substrates.