Design And Control Of Linkage-based Mobile System With Expandable Deformation Function

Different from the construction concept of the wheeled, tracked, and legged mobile system, a class of novel concept linkage-based mobile systems are proposed, which adopts the design principle of constructing the mechanical part of the mobile mechanism with overall part of the complicated spatial linkage mechanism. The design methods and control strategies of the proposed new linkage-based mobile mechanisms are studied and explored by taking the following advantages and properties as design constraints and objectives:overall expandable and deployable deformation, modular design, high mobility, multiple locomotion modes, quick responding and fast locomotion, complicated environment suitability, transportation ability, and simple control. For the mechanism design, the modular construction concept of using vertex and telescopic components are adopted; For the configuration construction, several construction concepts including only prismatic joint construction, decoupled tetrahedral-based construction, and improved parallel mobile mechanism integrated with expandable and deployable mechanisms are proposed; For the construction method, a binary control strategy is used; and, for the actuation, the pneumatic and hydraulic actuation methods are chosen.A comprehensive research of the linkage-based mobile mechanisms is carried out, which ranges from the multiple aspects including deformation principle explanation, theoretical analysis of locomotion, dynamic simulation, and physical prototype experiments. The principal research contents can be briefly described as follows:(1) From the aspects of reducing complexity of kinematics, enhancing overall rigidity, realizing fast rolling and large expandable interior available space, a design concept of linkage-based mobile mechanism that adopts only prismatic construction as the configuration construction, mini pneumatic cylinder as binary actuator, and binary control strategy as the control method is proposed. An extending design method of pneumatic expandable hexahedral linkage-based mobile mechanism is explored, which adopts a spatial symmetric configuration and uses two kinds of vertex components as the construction modules; the construction characteristics of the mobile mechanism is explained; the locomotion condition, gaits and efficiency is detailed analyzed.(2) From the aspects of extending the functions of deformation, locomotion, and transportation for the only prismatic joint construction, two kinds of novel spatial linkage-based modular units that possess tetrahedron and cube configurations and construction method of each type of modules are proposed by integrating with design concepts including modular and interior separate space design, binary control and actuation, and spatial symmetric extending and combining construction. The configuration design and combination methods integrating with concept of the binary control strategy for a decoupled tetrahedral linkage-based mobile mechanism and a frame-like lattice expandable cube modular reconfigurable robot is detailed discussed; the multiple locomotion modes and the properties of kinematics and dynamics of the constructed mobile mechanisms are analyzed.(3) From the design aspects of special environment transportation using multiple locomotion modes, large expandable and deployable deformation, high rigidity, modular design, locomotion and manipulation integration, quick respond and heavy payload transportation, two types of construction methods for two kinds of parallel deformable transportation platforms that adopts and improving the construction concept of the parallel mechanism are proposed. The two mobile mechanisms are constructed by replacing the rigid two platforms of traditional parallel mechanism with two configurable platforms and by replacing the telescopic rods of traditional parallel mechanism of traditional parallel mechanism with expandable mechanisms, respectively. The configuration design method of linkage-based mobile mechanism, multiple locomotion modes, and deformation properties are discussed and explored.The new design concept that uses the overall spatial linkage mechanism to construct linkage-based mobile system provides a new type and potential construction solution for the family of mobile robots. The deeply discussion and analysis of the mechanism design, actuation and control technology, locomotion modes and deformation capabilities of the proposed new concept of linkage-based mobile mechanism are carried out, which provide the theoretical support and technology guidance for the research and application of these kinds of mobile mechanisms.