Euler spring collision protection for flying robots

Klaptocz, Adam; Briod, Adrien; Daler, Ludovic; Zufferey, Jean-Christophe; Floreano, Dario

doi:10.1109/iros.2013.6696606

Cited by 47 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…Besides, a number of novel designs have been documented recently in the literature and shown cheerful prospects, particularly focusing on: (1) operational principle (e.g., Samara-inspired rotorcraft UAV at University of Maryland [137]), and (2) rotorcraft peripheral design (e.g., Euler spring protection design for coaxial UAV at EPFL [53]). …”

Section: Small-scale Rotorcraft Uav Platformsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Survey of Small-Scale Unmanned Aerial Vehicles: Recent Advances and Future Development Trends

2014

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This paper provides a brief overview on the recent advances of small-scale unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) from the perspective of platforms, key elements, and scientific research. The survey starts with an introduction of the recent advances of small-scale UAV platforms, based on the information summarized from 132 models available worldwide. Next, the evolvement of the key elements, including onboard processing units, navigation sensors, mission-oriented sensors, communication modules, and ground control station, is presented and analyzed. Third, achievements of small-scale UAV research, particularly on platform design and construction, dynamics modeling, and flight control, are introduced. Finally, the future of small-scale UAVs' research, civil applications, and military applications are forecasted.

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Section: Small-scale Rotorcraft Uav Platformsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Survey of Small-Scale Unmanned Aerial Vehicles: Recent Advances and Future Development Trends

2014

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“…Also during transportation, especially in a pocket or a backpack, the drone can be overloaded and consequently damaged. Therefore, a major challenge is to design collision-tolerant drones that survive collisions and transportation without major structural failures [3] [12]. In a quadcopter, the arms are the most fragile components due to their length that increases their vulnerability to flexural failure.…”

Section: Collision Resiliencementioning

confidence: 99%

“…In a quadcopter, the arms are the most fragile components due to their length that increases their vulnerability to flexural failure. The common practice to prevent damages involves therefore the use of external cages or dedicated structures that protect the sensible arms of the quadcopter [12]. In the foldable quad, we explored a different strategy, that takes inspiration from insects.…”

Section: Collision Resiliencementioning

confidence: 99%

A pocket sized foldable quadcopter for situational awareness and reconnaissance

Mintchev

Floreano

2016

2016 IEEE International Symposium on Safety, Security, and Rescue Robotics (SSRR)

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Abstract-Flying robots are rapidly becoming an essential tool in search and rescue missions because they can rapidly gather information from inaccessible or unsafe locations, thus increasing safety and rapidity of interventions. With this aim, we present a pocket sized foldable quadcopter equipped with a camera. The drone is a portable and rugged "flying-eye" that aims to extend or move the field of view of the rescuer for situational awareness and safe reconnaissance. The quadcopter can be packaged for transportation by folding its arms and it self-deploys in a glimpse before usage. Its compliant foldable arms make it rugged, reducing the risk of failure after collisions. The drone is remotely operated and it can stream sound, thermal and visual images in real time to rescuers. The prototype of the foldable quadcopter is experimentally characterized and assessed in preliminary field tests. I. INTRODUCTIONDrones are becoming ubiquitous in the daily life and their socio-economic impact is constantly increasing [1]. In the field of search and rescue, we are witnessing the growth of a wide spectrum of applications, such as mapping [2], inspection [3] and multi-modal operations [4], where unmanned aerial vehicles are leveraged to increase safety, productivity and rapidity of intervention, while minimizing operational costs.While the challenges surrounding perception and control are frequently cited as being key areas for research [1], other important aspects are how to make such robots easily transportable, quick to deploy and robust against collisions. Several applications exist where a resilient, readily available drone would be a game changer. For example, in search and rescue missions where damage relief is subordinate to the rapidity of intervention [5], and where flights in cluttered environments with high probability of collisions are a commonplace [3]. To tackle these challenges, we are envisaging a new class of sturdy and portable drones, which function as a personal "flying eye" that is readily airborne from users' hand as soon as it is taken out from a pocket or a backpack.Leveraging the miniaturization of electro-mechanical components, drones that fit the palm of a hand are now commonplace. However, since lift is increasing with the size of the drone, smaller drones have significantly reduced time of flight and payload [1]. This drawback could be addressed by incorporating foldable structures [6] in comparatively larger drone with suitable payload that can be stored and transported in a small volume. Most of the existing foldable drones rely on multi-joint folding mechanisms (e.g. the The authors are with the Laboratory of Intelligent Systems

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“…A safer approach is to enclose the drone into all-round protective structures. For example, lightweight carbon fiber cages have shown to be effective in avoiding injuries to users and avoiding drone damage during collisions [5][6][7][8]. However, none of these platforms are directly suited for parcel transportation due to the limited space inside the cage.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An origami-inspired cargo drone

Kornatowski

Mintchev

Floreano

2017

2017 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS)

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Abstract-Multicopters stand to revolutionize parcel delivery because of their capability to operate in areas with unsuitable road infrastructure and precisely maneuver in cluttered environments. However, current multicopters for delivery can be dangerous for people, and are difficult to store and transport. Safety issues arise because users are exposed to unshielded spinning propellers. Transportation to the place of deployment and storage is often impaired by the large size that is required for heavy lifting. This paper addresses these limitations by proposing the integration of a quadcopter into a foldable protective cage. The cage provides an all-round protective structure that physically separates the propellers from the environment, ensuring the safety of people. The drone and the cage can be easily folded with a single movement, significantly reducing its size for ease of storage and transportation. This design has been validated with a quadcopter that can lift parcels up to 500 g and reduce its storage volume by 92% when folded.

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Euler spring collision protection for flying robots

Cited by 47 publications

References 8 publications

A Survey of Small-Scale Unmanned Aerial Vehicles: Recent Advances and Future Development Trends

A Survey of Small-Scale Unmanned Aerial Vehicles: Recent Advances and Future Development Trends

A pocket sized foldable quadcopter for situational awareness and reconnaissance

An origami-inspired cargo drone

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