• The Transactions of The Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers
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• v.58 no.4
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• pp.817-823
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• 2009

This paper proposes a robust method for mapping of a caterpillar-type mobile robot which inherently has uncertainty in its modeling by compensating for the estimated pose error of the robot. In general, a caterpillar type robot is difficult to model, which results in inaccuracy in Simultaneous Localization And Mapping(SLAM). To enhance the robustness of the SLAM for a caterpillar-type mobile robot, we factorize the SLAM posterior, where we used particle filter to estimate the position of the robot and Extended Kalman Filter(EKF) to map the environment. The simulation results show the effectiveness and robustness of the proposed method for mapping.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Precision Engineering Conference
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• 2006.05a
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• pp.55-56
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• 2006

This paper describes a new concept of the robot that can climb on the vertical plane. The engineering design problem of the main structure is presented and the experimental results regarding a new mechanism of climbing on the vertical wall are discussed. The locomotive motion of the robot is realized by using a series chain of two caterpillar wheels on which 24-suction pads are installed. White each caterpillar wheel rotates on the vertical plane surface, the vacuum pads are activated in sequence based on the sequential opening by specially designed mechanical valves. The detail design feature of the valve is also described in this paper. The overall size of the robot is around 460 mm in width and length, respectively, and 200 mm in height. Its mass is slightly over 14 kg. The main mechanical structure of the robot consists of driving motors, vacuum caterpillar system, steering part, vacuum pump and battery. The performance of the robot is verified on the vertical wall.

• The Journal of Korea Robotics Society
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.142-151
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• 2022

With the advent of the 4th industrial revolution, autonomous driving technology is being commercialized in various industries. However, research on autonomous driving so far has focused on platforms with wheel-type platform. Research on a tracked platform is at a relatively inadequate step. Since the tracked platform has a different driving and steering method from the wheel-type platform, the existing research cannot be applied as it is. Therefore, a path-tracking algorithm suitable for a tracked platform is required. In this paper, we studied a path-tracking algorithm for a tracked platform based on a GPS sensor. The existing Pure Pursuit algorithm was applied in consideration of the characteristics of the tracked platform. And to compensate for "Cutting Corner", which is a disadvantage of the existing Pure Pursuit algorithm, an algorithm that changes the LAD according to the curvature of the path was developed. In the existing pure pursuit algorithm that used a tracked platform to drive a path including a right-angle turn, the RMS path error in the straight section was 0.1034 m and the RMS error in the turning section was measured to be 0.2787 m. On the other hand, in the variable LAD algorithm, the RMS path error in the straight section was 0.0987 m, and the RMS path error in the turning section was measured to be 0.1396 m. In the turning section, the RMS path error was reduced by 48.8971%. The validity of the algorithm was verified by measuring the path error by tracking the path using a tracked robot platform.

• Journal of Ocean Engineering and Technology
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.152-159
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• 2014

KRISO(Korea Research Institute of Ships & Ocean Engineering) designed and manufactured a pilot mining robot called "MineRo" in 2012. MineRo is composed of four track modules. In general, much time and money are needed for deep-sea tests. Therefore, a numerical analysis to predict the dynamic behaviors has to be performed before a deep-sea test. In the numerical analysis, the information about the mining robot and soil properties are the most important factors to analyze the driving performance and dynamic response of MineRo. A terra-mechanics model of extremely cohesive soft soil is implemented in the form of the relationships between the normal pressure and sinkage, and between the shear stress and shear displacement. It is possible to acquire information about MineRo from the CAD model in the design phase. The Wong model is applied to the terra-mechanics model. This model is necessary to acquire many soil coefficients for a numerical analysis. However, in soil testing, the amount of soil property data obtained is limited. Moreover, it is difficult to analyze all of the cases for the many soil coefficients. In this paper, the dynamic behaviors of MineRo are analyzed according to the driving velocity, steering ratio, and variable extremely cohesive soft soil properties using a table of orthogonal arrays. The dynamic responses of MineRo are the turning radius, sinkage, and slip ratio. The relationships between the dynamic responses and variable soil properties are derived for MineRo.