Locomotion for Difficult Terrain

• Main Author: Freyr Hardarson Mechatronics
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Subjects: Arctic
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.31.5881

Introduction Most of the earth's land surface is inaccessible to regular vehicles so there is a need for mobile robots that can handle difficult terrain. Today's robots are mostly designed for traveling over relatively smooth, level or inclined, surfaces. This survey will however discuss different locomotion systems for mobile robots used in difficult terrain. Only robots that use ground contact for propulsion are considered which means that robots travelling through air or water are not included. The terrain in question is either outdoor environments that are generally considered difficult for mobile robots, such as rough terrain, deserts and arctic areas, or indoor environments where staircases, doorsteps and tight corners can cause difficulties. These robots have applications including forestry, agriculture, (planetary) exploration, fire fighting, radioactive or poisonous areas, disaster or hazardous areas and construction sites. The aim of this survey is to give an overvie