A Quadrotor With a Passively Reconfigurable Airframe for Hybrid Terrestrial Locomotion
Huaiyuan Jia, Songnan Bai, Runze Ding, Jing Shu, Yanlin Deng, Bee Luan Khoo, Pakpong Chirarattananon
Abstract
Despite efforts to circumvent and alleviate the impact of a mid-flight collision, it remains extremely challenging to safeguard a multirotor vehicle when it operates in cluttered environments. In this work, we introduce a flying robot with the ability to roll through a gap narrower than its diameter to prevent a possible aerial collision entirely. The novelty of the proposed design lies in a simple passive mechanism that redirects the propelling thrust for the terrestrial operation without the need for extra actuators. As a result, the robot remains compact and lightweight. Furthermore, to overcome the underactuation associated with the passive structure, the transitions between flight and rolling are accomplished with a highly dynamic maneuver. In the experimental demonstration, the robot seamlessly switched between the aerial and terrestrial locomotion to safely negotiate a 10-cm opening.