Omegabot

Crawling robot, inspired by an inchworm's locomotion, that is lightweight and can be used in hazardous environments for monitoring and inspection. This robot, inspired by an inchworm locomotion, is manufactured from 2D patterns placed in a single film of composite and folded into working mechanisms. This design removes the need for assembly. The actuators are made from shape-memory alloy springs that are also designed to optimally increase the actuation frequency and the stroke of the bending motion of the robot.

Seoul National University

Specifications

Length150 mm
Width 15 mm
Maximum height 34 mm
Weight1.2 g
Wire diameter 0.1 mm
Spring diameter 1.1 mm
Number of coils 3

Overview

This robot, inspired by inchworm locomotion, is manufactured from 2D patterns placed in a single film of composite and folded into working mechanisms. This design removes the need for assembly. The actuators are made from shape-memory alloy springs that are also designed to optimally increase the actuation frequency and the stroke of the bending motion of the robot.

The pads of the robot that make contact with the surface are patterned structures with anisotropic friction coefficients, designed to always have larger friction forces in the direction that moves the Omegabot forward.

References

Describes three design concepts for developing a crawling robot inspired by an inchworm. Describes the design, steering mechanism, and the actuators. Finally, there is a conclusion and future work is discussed.

J. Koh, K. Cho. - Article in IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics · April 2013

Describes the mechanical design and fabrication of Omegabot and a proper selection of SMA spring actuators with a method for improving actuation performance.

J. Koh, S. An, K. Cho. - Article · September 2010. [Paywall]

Describes the design of the robot based on SCM. Crawling motion is described followed by a 2 dimensional turning motion.

J. Koh, K. Cho. - Conference: Robotics and Biomimetics (ROBIO), January 2010. [Paywall]

Describes the design, fabrication processes of the microrobot. Describes features of the motion of the inchworm (Ascotis Selenaria) as well as various motions and parts that are to be applied for Omegabot.

J. Koh, K. Cho. - IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation Anchorage Convention District, May 2010. [Paywall]

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