• The Journal of Korea Robotics Society
• /
• v.3 no.3
• /
• pp.186-193
• /
• 2008

We propose a novel real-time obstacle avoidance method for rescue robots. This method, named the ELA(Emergency Level Around), permits the detection of unknown obstacles and avoids collisions while simultaneously steering the mobile robot toward safe position. In the ELA, we consider two sensor modules, PSD(Position Sensitive Detector) infrared sensors taking charge of obstacle detection in short distance and LMS(Laser Measurement System) in long distance respectively. Hence if a robot recognizes an obstacle ahead by PSD infrared sensors first, and judges impossibility to overcome the obstacle based on driving mode decision process, the order of priority is transferred to LMS which collects data of radial distance centered on the robot to avoid the confronted obstacle. After gathering radial information, the ELA algorithm estimates emergency level around a robot and generates a polar histogram based on the emergency level to judge where the optimal free space is. Finally, steering angle is determined to guarantee rotation to randomly direction as well as robot width for safe avoidance. Simulation results from wandering in closed local area which includes various obstacles and different conditions demonstrate the power of the ELA.

• 제어로봇시스템학회:학술대회논문집
• /
• 2005.06a
• /
• pp.1048-1053
• /
• 2005

This paper presents design and integration of the ROBHAZ-DT3, which is a newly developed mobile robot system with chained double-track mechanisms. A passive adaptation mechanism equipped between the front and rear body enables the ROBHAZ-DT3 to have good adaptability to uneven terrains including stairs. The passive adaptation mechanism reduces energy consumption when moving on uneven terrain as well as its simplicity in design and remote control, since no actuator is necessary for adaptation. Based on this novel mobile platform, a rescue version of the ROBHAZ-DT3 with appropriate sensors and a semi-autonomous mapping and localization algorithm is developed to participate in the RoboCup2004 US-Open: Urban Search and Rescue Competition. From the various experiments in the realistic rescue arena, we can verify that the ROBHAZ-DT3 is reliable in traveling rugged terrain and the proposed mapping and localization algorithm are effective in the unstructured environment with uneven ground. The another application is an military robot for an EOD(Explosive Ordnance Disposal) and reconnaissance mission. The military version of the ROBHAZ-DT3 with a water disrupter, a thermal scope and a long distance wireless communication device is developed and sent to the area of military tactics in Iraq. Consequently, the feasibility of the military version of ROBHAZ-DT3 is verified.

• Journal of Drive and Control
• /
• v.14 no.4
• /
• pp.51-60
• /
• 2017

In this study to develop disaster response robot in complex disaster site, we present the design of hydraulic manipulators for armored robot systems. To this end, we performed voice of customer researches with firefighters and rescue personnel. We created and analyzed the mission scenario of firefighters and rescue personnel in complex disaster situations, and derived the required functions of the robot to successfully perform missions. A heavy-duty, heat resistant, dexterous hydraulic robot manipulators is designed to realize the required functions. The designed robot has been verified through simulations and analysis in terms of the working area of the robot, actuating torques, and temperature analysis.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Manufacturing Process Engineers
• /
• v.21 no.4
• /
• pp.114-130
• /
• 2022

The purpose of this study was to investigate the possibility of increasing the efficiency of disaster relief rescue operations through collaboration among multiple aerial and ground robots. The robots create 2.5D maps, which are merged into a 2.5D map. The 2.5D map can be handled by a low-specification controller of an aerial robot and is suitable for ground robot navigation. For localization of the aerial robot, a six-degree-of-freedom pose recognition method using VIO was applied. To build a 2.5D map, an image conversion technique was employed. In addition, to merge 2.5D maps, an image similarity calculation technique based on the features on a wall was used. Localization and navigation were performed using a ground robot to evaluate the reliability of the 2.5D map. As a result, it was possible to estimate the location with an average and standard error of less than 0.3 m for the place where the 2.5D map was normally built, and there were only four collisions for the obstacle with the smallest volume. Based on the 2.5D map building and map merging system for the aerial robot used in this study, it is expected that disaster response work efficiency can be improved by combining the advantages of heterogeneous robots.

• Journal of the Korea Institute of Military Science and Technology
• /
• v.18 no.4
• /
• pp.451-458
• /
• 2015

This paper handles self-collision avoidance for a rescue robot with redundant manipulators. In order to detect all available self-collisions in advance, minimum distances between arbitrary robot parts should be monitored in real-time. For the minimum distance estimation, we suggest a modified method from a previous skeleton algorithm which has less computation burden and realize collision avoidance based on a potential function using the proposed algorithm. The resultant command by collision avoidance should not disturb a given primary task, so null-space of joint solution from a CLIK is utilized for collision avoidance by a gradient projection method.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Precision Engineering Conference
• /
• 2009.10a
• /
• pp.143-144
• /
• 2009

• Journal of Institute of Control, Robotics and Systems
• /
• v.13 no.2
• /
• pp.114-120
• /
• 2007

This paper introduces a mobile robotic system being developed for urban search and rescue. In order to search human victims in narrow spaces, we developed two types of serially linked mobile robots, named KAEROT-Centipede and KAEROT-SnakeTV1, that can climb over large vertical steps or travel inside narrow vertical pipes. To send such mobile robots to the disaster areas coping with large obstacles, we also developed a assistant mobile robot, named KAEROT-QuadTrack, that has 4 articulated track modules. This paper describes the mechanical structure and control architecture of the serially linked mobile robots and the supporting configuration for torque reduction of the assistant mobile robot during spinning motion that usually requires large driving torque. The experimental results show that such robotic systems have good mobility over the various terrains in disaster areas.

• ETRI Journal
• /
• v.37 no.2
• /
• pp.262-272
• /
• 2015

In particular, for a practical mobile robot team to perform such a task as that of carrying out a search and rescue mission in a disaster area, the network connectivity and localization have to be guaranteed even in an environment where the network infrastructure is destroyed or a Global Positioning System is unavailable. This paper proposes the new collective intelligence network management architecture of multiple mobile robots supporting seamless network connectivity and cooperative localization. The proposed architecture includes a resource manager that makes the robots move around and not disconnect from the network link by considering the strength of the network signal and link quality. The location manager in the architecture supports localizing robots seamlessly by finding the relative locations of the robots as they move from a global outdoor environment to a local indoor position. The proposed schemes assuring network connectivity and localization were validated through numerical simulations and applied to a search and rescue robot team.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Precision Engineering
• /
• v.30 no.1
• /
• pp.47-52
• /
• 2013

In order to operate a search and rescue robot in hazardous area, the robot requires high mobility and adaptable locomotion for moving in unpredictable environments. In this paper, we propose the deformable soft wheel robot that can produce three kinds of driving modes; caterpillar driving mode, normal wheel driving mode, legged-wheel driving mode. The robot changes its driving mode as it faces the various obstacles such as a small gap, stairs etc. Soft film and composite materials are used for fabrication of deformable wheel structure and Shape Memory Alloy (SMA) coil spring actuators are attached on the structure as an artificial muscle. Film lamination and an composite manufacturing process is introduced and the robot design is required to be modified and compromised to applying the manufacturing process. The prototype is developed and tested for verifying feasibility of the deformable wheel locomotion.

• Proceeding of EDISON Challenge
• /
• 2016.03a
• /
• pp.429-433
• /
• 2016

Moving robot is divided 2 kinds; one is the robot using wheels and the other has leg structure. On plat terrain, the former is better than the latter because it has fast speed and simple method to control. But on non-plat terrain, the situation is reversed. The robot using legs has slow speed but it has advantage to adjust various environments. This robot is expected to contribute to human in many fields such as rescue and exploration and so on. So walking robot is worth enough to research. In this paper, we present the design of 4-legged walking robot based on Jansen mechanism using m-Sketch and Edison Designer.