On Model-based Adhesion Control of a Vortex Climbing Robot

Abstract

In this article, the adhesion modeling and control case of a Vortex Climbing Robot (VCR) is investigated against a surface of variable orientations. The critical adhesion force exerted from the implemented Vortex Actuator (VA) and the VCR's achievable payload are analyzed under 3-DOF rotations of the test surface, while extracted from both geometrical analysis and dynamically-simulated numerical results. A model-based control scheme is later proposed, with the goal of achieving adhesion while the VCR remains immobilized, limiting the power consumption and compensating for disturbances (e.g. moving cables) leading to Center-of-Mass (CoM) changes. Finally, the model-based control scheme is experimentally evaluated, with the VCR prototype on a rotating and moving flat surface. The presented results support the use of the proposed methodology in climbing robots targeting inspection and maintenance of stationary surfaces (flat, curved etc.), as well as future robotic solutions operating on moving structures (e.g. ships, cranes, folding bridges).

Review of Non-Destructive Civil Infrastructure Evaluation for Bridges: State-of-the-Art Robotic Platforms, Sensors and Algorithms

“…A number of climbing, walking and crawling robots have also been developed, which are able to scale the vertical surfaces of the bridge infrastructure. Some of these robots include the BRIDGE (Bridge Risk Investigation Diagnostic Grouped Exploratory) bot [39], chain-like robot [52], magnetic wheeled robot [38], and the vortex climbing robot [69]. Most of the climbing and sliding robots dedicated to the inspection of different parts of the bridges are small-scale in nature, with a primary reliance on visual inspection methods using vision-based sensors.…”

“…In recent decades, there has been an increased focus towards the development and usage of semi-autonomous and fully autonomous robots for the NDE and SHM of civil infrastructures in general and bridges in particular. A wide array of diverse robots have been developed ranging from climbing robots (e.g., legged robots, wheel-based sliding robots and crawler robots) [ 38 , 39 , 40 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 57 , 58 , 59 , 60 , 61 , 62 ], and multi-rotor unmanned aerial vehicles (e.g., quad-rotors and octo-rotors) [ 63 , 64 , 65 , 66 , 67 , 68 , 69 ] to unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) (e.g., advanced robotics and automation (ARA) lab robot, robotic crack inspection and mapping (ROCIM) , robotics-assisted bridge inspection tool (RABIT)) [ 45 , 47 , 70 , 71 , 72 , 73 , 74 , 75 , 76 , 77 , 78 , 79 ] and water-based robotic crafts (e.g., unmanned submersible vehicles (USVs), underwater marine vehicles (UMVs), underwater vehicles (UUVs)) [ 41 , 42 , 80 ].…”

“…A number of different robot platforms are designed for inspection activities for specific types of bridges (e.g., cantilever, arch, suspension, truss, cable-stayed, beam, girder and tied-arch bridges) [ 38 , 39 , 40 , 46 , 48 , 49 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 55 , 56 , 58 , 59 , 63 , 64 , 65 , 66 , 67 , 68 , 69 , 70 , 71 , 73 , 87 ]. In order to provide some level of insight regarding the different robotic solutions for bridge inspection, the proceeding discussion will focus on the taxonomy provided in Figure 6 , namely: (i) ground robots, (ii) aerial robots, and (iii) marine robots.…”

“…legged robots, wheel-based sliding robots and crawler robots) [38][39][40][48][49][50][51][52][53][54][55][56][57][58][59][60][61][62], and multi-rotor unmanned aerial vehicles (e.g., quad-rotors and octo-rotors) [63][64][65][66][67][68][69] to unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) (e.g., advanced robotics and automation (ARA) lab robot, robotic crack inspection and mapping (ROCIM), robotics-assisted bridge inspection tool (RABIT)) [45,47,[70][71][72][73][74][75][76][77][78][79] and water-based robotic crafts (e.g., unmanned submersible vehicles (USVs), underwater marine vehicles (UMVs), underwater vehicles (UUVs)) [41,42,80]. Some of the recent studies have also focused towards developing hybrid robotic frameworks (e.g., wall-climbing unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), robots capable of flying and crawling and other multi-rotor flying robots capable of latching on to specific parts of infrastructure that require inspection), which are able to provide multi-functional roles and capabilities for the different types of inspection activities [43,…”

Design and Control of a Wall Cleaning Robot with Adhesion-Awareness

“…Nevertheless, the scope of the above-mentioned work is limited to inferring the design parameters for future developments. Andrikopoulos et al [30] proposed a model to improve the energy efficiency and safety of a climbing robot by controlling the adhesion based on the angle of inclination of a surface. The method was proposed for a robot that uses propeller thrust to provide the adhesion force.…”