Title :
Locomotion configuration of a robust rappelling robot
Author :
Apostolopoulos, Dimitrios ; Bares, John
Author_Institution :
Robotics Inst., Carnegie Mellon Univ., Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Abstract :
Robotic rappelling is an intriguing concept for exploration of planetary craters and their Earth analogs, volcanoes. Integrating a tensioned tether to a framewalking robot enables a new statically-stable locomotive capability appropriate for rappelling on steep and rugged terrains. Rappelling with a tether-assisted framewalker also allows efficient execution of multi-level control. These ideas are manifested in the locomotion configuration of Dante II. The appropriateness of the Dante II configuration for rappelling was evaluated during a variety of tests and its 1994 exploration of the active volcano of Mount Spurr in Alaska
Keywords :
legged locomotion; motion control; robust control; volcanology; Alaska; Dante II; Mount Spurr; locomotion configuration; multi-level control; rappelling robot; steep terrains; tensioned tether; tether-assisted framewalker; volcano exploration; walking robot; Earth; Force control; Humans; Legged locomotion; Navigation; Planetary volcanoes; Robot sensing systems; Robustness; Stability; Winches;
Conference_Titel :
Intelligent Robots and Systems 95. 'Human Robot Interaction and Cooperative Robots', Proceedings. 1995 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on
Conference_Location :
Pittsburgh, PA
Print_ISBN :
0-8186-7108-4
DOI :
10.1109/IROS.1995.525896
