Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-4rdpn Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-13T06:44:23.234Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

A review of coupling mechanism designs for modular reconfigurable robots

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 October 2018

Wael Saab ,
Peter Racioppo  and
Pinhas Ben-Tzvi
Wael Saab
Affiliation:
Robotics and Mechatronics Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA. E-mails: waelsaab@vt.edu, rpeter8@vt.edu
Peter Racioppo
Affiliation:
Robotics and Mechatronics Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA. E-mails: waelsaab@vt.edu, rpeter8@vt.edu
Pinhas Ben-Tzvi*
Affiliation:
Robotics and Mechatronics Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA. E-mails: waelsaab@vt.edu, rpeter8@vt.edu
*
*Corresponding author: E-mail: bentzvi@vt.edu.
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Summary

With the increasing demands for versatile robotic platforms capable of performing a variety of tasks in diverse and uncertain environments, the needs for adaptable robotic structures have been on the rise. These requirements have led to the development of modular reconfigurable robotic systems that are composed of a numerous self-sufficient modules. Each module is capable of establishing rigid connections between multiple modules to form new structures that enable new functionalities. This allows the system to adapt to unknown tasks and environments. In such structures, coupling between modules is of crucial importance to the overall functionality of the system. Over the last two decades, researchers in the field of modular reconfigurable robotics have developed novel coupling mechanisms intended to establish rigid and robust connections, while enhancing system autonomy and reconfigurability. In this paper, we review research contributions related to robotic coupling mechanism designs, with the aim of outlining current progress and identifying key challenges and opportunities that lay ahead. By presenting notable design approaches to coupling mechanisms and the most relevant efforts at addressing the challenges of sensorization, misalignment tolerance, and autonomous reconfiguration, we hope to provide a useful starting point for further research into the field of modular reconfigurable robotics and other applications of robotic coupling.

Keywords

Robotic self-diagnosis and self-repairModular roboticsSwarm roboticsMulti-agent robot teamsSensor network
Type
Articles
Information
Robotica , Volume 37 , Issue 2 , February 2019 , pp. 378 - 403
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2018 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1. Yim, M., Zhang, Y. and Duff, D., “Modular robots,” IEEE Spectr. 39 (2), 30–34 (2002).Google Scholar
2. Castano, A., Shen, W. and Will, P., “CONRO: Towards deployable robots with inter-robot metamorphic capabilities,” Auton. Robots. 8 (3), 309–324 (2000).Google Scholar
3. Feczko, J., Manka, M., Krol, P., Giergiel, M., Uhl, T. and Pietrzyk, A., “Review of the Modular Self Reconfigurable Robotic Systems,” Proceedings of the IEEE International Workshop on Robot Motion and Control, Poznan, Poland (2015) pp. 182–187.Google Scholar
4. Moubarak, P. and Ben-Tzvi, P., “Modular and reconfigurable mobile robotics,” Rob. Auton. Syst. 60 (12), 1648–1663 (2012).Google Scholar
5. Fehse, W., “Automated Rendezvous and Docking of Spacecraft,” (Cambridge University Press, 2003).Google Scholar
6. Chengxun, W. X. C. Z. S. and Qingrui, Z., “Docking dynamics of a spacecraft,” J. Astronaut. 3, 15–24 (1991).Google Scholar
7. Stokey, R., Purcell, M., Forrester, N., Austin, T., Goldsborough, R., Allen, B. and von Alt, C., “A Docking System for REMUS, An Autonomous Underwater Vehicle,” Proceedings of the MTS/IEEE Conference Proceedings Ocean, Halifax, Canada (1997) pp. 1132–1136.Google Scholar
8. Cowen, S., Briest, S. and Dombrowski, J., “Underwater Docking of Autonomous Undersea Vehicles Using Optical Terminal Guidance,” Proceedings of the MTS/IEEE Conference Proceedings Ocean, Halifax, Canada (1997) pp. 1143–1147.Google Scholar
9. Nilsson, M., “Heavy-Duty Connectors for Self-Reconfiguring Robots,” Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, Washington, DC (2002).Google Scholar
10. Murata, S., Yoshida, E., Kurokawa, H., Tomita, K. and Kokaji, S., “Self-repairing mechanical systems,” Auton. Robots. 10 (1), 7–21 (2001).Google Scholar
11. Castano, A., Behar, A. and Will, P. M., “The Conro modules for reconfigurable robots,” IEEE/ASME Trans. Mechatronics. 7 (4), 403–409 (2002).Google Scholar
12. Rubenstein, M., Payne, K., Will, P., Shen, W.-M. S. W.-M., “Docking Among Independent and Autonomous CONRO Self-Reconfigurable Robots,” Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, New Orleans, LA (2004) pp. 2877–2882.Google Scholar
13. Yim, M., Zhang, Y., Roufas, K., Duff, D. and Eldershaw, C., “Connecting and disconnecting for chain self-reconfiguration with PolyBot,” IEEE/ASME Trans. Mechatronics. 7 (4), 442–451 (2002).Google Scholar
14. Yim, M., Roufas, K., Duff, D., Zhang, Y., Eldershaw, C. and Homans, S., “Modular reconfigurable robots in space applications,” Auton. Robots. 14 (2), 225–237 (2003).Google Scholar
15. Yim, M., “Locomotion with a Unit-Modular Reconfigurable Robot,” Stanford University, Standford, CA, USA, 1994.Google Scholar
16. Yim, M., Duff, D. G. and Roufas, K. D., “PolyBot: A Modular Reconfigurable Robot,” Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, San Francisco, CA (2000) pp. 514–520.Google Scholar
17. Brown, H. B., Vande Weghe, J. M., Bererton, C. A., and Khosla, P. K., “Millibot trains for enhanced mobility,” IEEE/ASME Trans. Mechatronics. 7 (4), 452–461 (2002).Google Scholar
18. Grabowski, R., Khosla, P. and Choset, H., “Development and Deployment of a Line of Sight Virtual Sensor for Heterogeneous Teams,” Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, New Orleans, LA (2004) pp. 3024–3029.Google Scholar
19. Nilsson, M., “Connectors for self-reconfiguring robots,” IEEE/ASME Trans. Mechatronics. 7 (4), 473–474 (2002).Google Scholar
20. Zong, G., Deng, Z. and Wang, W., “Realization of a Modular Reconfigurable Robot for Rough Terrain,” Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Mechatronics and Automation, Henan, China (2006) pp. 289–294.Google Scholar
21. Zhang, H. X., Chen, S. Y., Wang, W., Zhang, J. W., and Zong, G. H., “Runtime Reconfiguration of a Modular Mobile Robot with Serial and Parallel Mechanisms,” Proceedings of the IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, San Diego, CA (2007) pp. 2999–3004.Google Scholar
22. Zhang, H., Deng, Z., Wang, W., Zhang, J. and Zong, G., “Locomotion Capabilities of a Novel Reconfigurable Robot with 3 DOF Active Joints for Rugged Terrain,” Proceedings of the IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, Beijing, China, (2006) pp. 5588–5593.Google Scholar
23. Fu, G., Menciassi, A. and Dario, P., “Development of a Genderless and Fail-Safe Connection System for Autonomous Modular Robots,” Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Biomimetics, Phuket, Thailand (2011) pp. 877–882.Google Scholar
24. Kernbach, S., Meister, E., Schlachter, F., Jebens, K., Szymanski, M., Liedke, J., Laneri, D., Winkler, L., Schmickl, T. and Thenius, R., “Symbiotic Robot Organisms: REPLICATOR and SYMBRION Projects,” Proceedings of the 8th Workshop on Performance Metrics for Intelligent Systems, Gaithersburg, MD (2008) pp. 62–69.Google Scholar
25. Yoshida, E., Sci, A. I. and Scie, A. I., “Micro self-reconfigurable modular robot using shape memory alloy micro self-reconfigurable modular robot using shape memory alloy,” Distrib. Auton. Robot. Syst. 4 (2), 212–218 (2013).Google Scholar
26. Parker, L. E., Bekey, G. and Barhen, J., “Distributed autonomous robotic systems,” J. Chem. Inf. Model. 53 (9), 1689–1699 (2013).Google Scholar
27. Moubarak, P. M. and Ben-Tzvi, P., “A tristate rigid reversible and non-back-drivable active docking mechanism for modular robotics,” IEEE/ASME Trans. Mechatronics. 19 (3), 840–851 (2014).Google Scholar
28. Moubarak, P. M., Ben-Tzvi, P., Ma, Z., and Alvarez, E. J., “An Active Coupling Mechanism with Three Modes of Operation for Modular Mobile Robotics,” Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, Karlsruhe, Germany (2013) pp. 5489–5494.Google Scholar
29. Moubarak, P. M. and Ben-Tzvi, P., “On the dual-rod slider rocker mechanism and its applications to tristate rigid active docking,” J. Mech. Robot. 5 (1), 11010 (2013).Google Scholar
30. Moubarak, P. M., Alvarez, E. J. and Ben-Tzvi, P., “Reconfiguring a Modular Robot into a Humanoid Formation: A Multi-Body Dynamic Perspective on Motion Scheduling for Modules and Their Assemblies,” Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Automation Science and Engineering, Madison, WI (2013) pp. 687–692.Google Scholar
31. Kumar, P., Saab, W. and Ben-Tzvi, P., “Design of a Multi-Directional Hybrid-Locomotion Modular Robot with Feedforward Stability Control,” Proceedings of the ASME International Design Engineering Technical Conferences and Computers and Information in Engineering Conference, Clevland, OH (2017).Google Scholar
32. Fukuda, T., Buss, M., Hosokai, H. and Kawauchi, Y., “Cell structured robotic system CEBOT: Control, planning and communication methods,” Rob. Auton. Syst. 7 (2–3), 239–248 (1991).Google Scholar
33. Fukuda, T., Ueyama, T., Kawauchi, Y. and Arai, F., “Concept of Cellular Robotic System (CEBOT) and basic strategies for its realization,” Comput. Electr. Eng. 18 (1), 11–39 (1992).Google Scholar
34. Fukuda, T., Nakagawa, S., Kawauchi, Y. and Buss, M., “Self Organizing Robots Based on Cell Structures – CEBOT,” Proceedings of the IEEE International Workshop on Intelligent Robots, Scottsdale, AZ (1988) pp. 145–150.Google Scholar
35. Yoshida, E., Murata, S., Kamimura, A. and Tomita, K., “Self-Reconfigurable Modular Robots-Hardware and Software Development in AIST,” Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Robotics, Intelligent Systems and Signal Processing, Hunan, China (2003) pp. 339–346.Google Scholar
36. Murata, S., Kurokawa, H., Yoshida, E., Tomita, K. and Kokaji, S., “A 3-D Self-Reconfigurable Structure,” Proceedings of the IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, Victoria, Canada (1998).Google Scholar
37. Mondada, F., Gambardella, L. M., Floreano, D., Nolfi, S., Deneubourg, J. L. and Dorigo, M., “The cooperation of swarm-bots: Physical interactions in collective robotics,” IEEE Robot. Autom. Mag. 12 (2), 21–28 (2005).Google Scholar
38. Groß, R., Bonani, M., Mondada, F. and Dorigo, M., “Autonomous Self-Assembly in a Swarm-Bot,” Proceedings of the 3rd International Symposium on Autonomous Minirobots for Research and Edutainment, Berlin, Heidelberg (2006) pp. 314–322.Google Scholar
39. Jorgensen, M. W., Ostergaard, E. H. and Lund, H. H., “Modular ATRON: Modules for a Self-Reconfigurable Robot,” Proceedings of the IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, Sendai, Japan, 40AD, pp. 2068–2073.Google Scholar
40. Østergaard, E. H., Kassow, K., Beck, R. and Lund, H. H., “Design of the ATRON lattice-based self-reconfigurable robot,” Auton. Robots. 21 (2), 165–183 (2006).Google Scholar
41. Wang, W., Yu, W. and Zhang, H., “JL-2: A mobile multi-robot system with docking and manipulating capabilities,” Int. J. Adv. Robot. Syst. 7 (1), 9–18 (2010).Google Scholar
42. Kurokawa, H., Tomita, K., Kamimura, A., Kokaji, S., Hasuo, T. and Murata, S., “Distributed self-reconfiguration of M-TRAN III modular robotic system,” Int. J. Rob. Res. 27 (3–4), 373–386 (2008).Google Scholar
43. Murata, S., Kakomura, K. and Kurokawa, H., “Docking Experiments of a Modular Robot by Visual Feedback,” Proceedings of the IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, Beijing, China (2006).Google Scholar
44. Spröwitz, A., Pouya, S., Bonardi, S., Van Den Kieboom, J., Möckel, R., Billard, A., Dillenbourg, P. and Ijspeert, A., “Roombots: Reconfigurable robots for adaptive furniture,” IEEE Comput. Intell. Mag. 5 (3), 20–32 (2010).Google Scholar
45. Sproewitz, A., Asadpour, M., Billard, A., Dillenbourg, P. and Ijspeert, J., “Roombots–Modular Robots for Adaptive Furniture,” Proceedings of the IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, Nice, France (2008).Google Scholar
46. Sproewitz, A., Billard, A., Dillenbourg, P. and Ijspeert, A. J., “Roombots-Mechanical Design of Self-Reconfiguring Modular Robots for Adaptive Furniture,” Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, Kobe, Japan (2009) pp. 4259–4264.Google Scholar
47. Wei, H., Chen, Y., Tan, J. and Wang, T., “Sambot: A self-assembly modular robot system,” IEEE/ASME Trans. Mechatronics. 16 (4), 745–757 (2011).Google Scholar
48. Wei, H.-X., Li, H.-Y., Guan, Y. and Li, Y.-D., “A dynamics based two-stage path model for the docking navigation of a self-assembly modular robot (Sambot),” Robotica. 34 (7), 1517–1528 (2016).Google Scholar
49. Wei, H., Li, D., Tan, J. and Wang, T., “The Distributed Control and Experiments of Directional Self-Assembly for Modular Swarm Robots,” Proceedings of the IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, Taipei, Taiwan (2010) pp. 4169–4174.Google Scholar
50. Zhang, Y., Song, G., Liu, S., Qiao, G., Zhang, J. and Sun, H., “A modular self-reconfigurable robot with enhanced locomotion performances: design, modeling, simulations, and experiments,” J. Intell. Robot. Syst. 81 (3–4), 377–393 (2016).Google Scholar
51. Rus, M. V. D., “Self-Reconfiguration with compressible unit modules,” J. Auton. Robot. 10 (1), 107–124 (2001).Google Scholar
52. Fitch, R., Rus, D. and Vona, M., “A basis for self-repair robots using self-reconfiguring crystal modules,” Intell. Auton. Syst. 6, 903–910 (2000).Google Scholar
53. Khosla, P. K., “A modular self-reconfigurable bipartite robotic system: Implementation and motion planning,” Auton. Robots. 10 (1), 23–40 (2001).Google Scholar
54. Unsal, C. and Khosla, P. K., “A Multi-Layered Planner for Self-Reconfiguration of a Uniform Group of I-Cube Modules,” Proceedings of the IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, Maui, HI (2001) pp. 598–605.Google Scholar
55. Qiao, G., Song, G., Zhang, J., Sun, H., Wang, W. and Song, A., “Design of transmote: A Modular Self-Reconfigurable Robot with Versatile Transformation Capabilities,” Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Biomimetics, Guangzhou, China (2012) pp. 1331–1336.Google Scholar
56. Qiao, G., Song, G., Wang, Y., Zhang, J. and Wang, W., “Autonomous network repairing of a home security system using modular self-reconfigurable robots,” IEEE Trans. Consum. Electron. 59 (3), 562–570 (2013).Google Scholar
57. Shen, W. M., Kovac, R. and Rubenstein, M., “Singo: A Single-End-Operative and Genderless Connector for Self-Reconfiguration, Self-Assembly and Self-Healing,” Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, Kobe, Japan (2009) pp. 4253–4258.Google Scholar
58. Salemi, B., Moll, M. and Shen, W. M., “SUPERBOT: A Deployable, Multi-Functional, and Modular Self-Reconfigurable Robotic System,” Proceedings of the IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, Beijing, China (2006) pp. 3636–3641.Google Scholar
59. Shen, W.-M., Krivokon, M., Chiu, H., Everist, J., Rubenstein, M. and Venkatesh, J., “Multimode locomotion via superbot reconfigurable robots,” Auton. Robots. 20 (2), 165–177 (2006).Google Scholar
60. Shen, W.-M., Krivokon, M., Chiu, H., Everist, J., Rubenstein, M. and Venkatesh, J., “Multimode Locomotion via Superbot Robots,” Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, Orlando, FL (2006) pp. 2552–2557.Google Scholar
61. Hossain, S. G. M. and Nelson, C. A., “RoGenSiD: A Rotary Plate Genderless Single-Sided Docking Mechanism for Modular Self-Reconfigurable Robots,” Proceedings of the ASME International Design Engineering Technical Conferences and Computers and Information in Engineering Conference, Portland, OR (2013) pp. 1–7.Google Scholar
62. Baca, J., Hossain, S. G. M., Dasgupta, P., Nelson, C. A. and Dutta, A., “Modred: Hardware design and reconfiguration planning for a high dexterity modular self-reconfigurable robot for extra-terrestrial exploration,” Rob. Auton. Syst. 62 (7), 1002–1015 (2014).Google Scholar
63. Parrott, C., Dodd, T. J. and Grob, R., “HiGen: A High-Speed Genderless Mechanical Connection Mechanism with Single-Sided Disconnect for Self-Reconfigurable Modular Robots,” Proceedings of the IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, Chicago, IL (2014) pp. 3926–3932.Google Scholar
64. Saab, W. and Ben-Tzvi, P., “Development of a Novel Coupling Mechanism for Modular Self-Reconfigurable Mobile Robots,” Proceedings of the ASME International Design Engineering Technical Conferences and Computers and Information in Engineering Conference, Boston, Ma (2015) p. V05BT08A007.Google Scholar
65. Saab, W. and Ben-Tzvi, P., “A genderless coupling mechanism with six-degrees-of-freedom misalignment capability for modular self-reconfigurable robots,” J. Mech. Robot. 8 (6), (2016).Google Scholar
66. Tomita, K., Murata, S., Kurokawa, H., Yoshida, E. and Kokaji, S., “Self-Assembly and self-repair method for a distributed mechanical system,” IEEE Trans. Robot. Autom. 15 (6), 1035–1045 (1999).Google Scholar
67. Murata, S., Kurokawa, H. and Kokaji, S., “Self-Assembling Machine,” Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, San Diego, CA (1994) pp. 441–448.Google Scholar
68. Suh, J. W., Homans, S. B. and Yim, M., “Telecubes: Mechanical Design of a Module for Self-Reconfigurable Robotics,” Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, Washington, DC (2002) pp. 4095–4101.Google Scholar
69. Vassilvitskii, S., Yim, M. and Suh, J., “A Complete, Local and Parallel Reconfiguration Algorithm for Cube Style Modular Robots,” Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, Washington, DC (2002) pp. 117–122.Google Scholar
70. Murata, S., Yoshida, E., Kamimura, A., Kurokawa, H., Tomita, K. and Kokaji, S., “M-TRAN: Self-Reconfigurable modular robotic system,” IEEE/ASME Trans. Mechatronics. 7 (4), 431–441 (2002).Google Scholar
71. Kurokawa, H., Kamimura, A., Yoshida, E., Tomita, K., Kokaji, S. and Murata, S., “M-TRAN II: Metamorphosis from a Four-Legged Walker to a Caterpillar,” Proceedings of the International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, Las Vegas, NV (2003) pp. 2454–2459.Google Scholar
72. Zykov, V., Mytilinaios, E., Desnoyer, M. and Lipson, H., “Evolved and designed self-reproducing modular robotics,” IEEE Trans. Robot. 23 (2), 308–319 (2007).Google Scholar
73. Zykov, V., Chan, A. and Lipson, H., “Molecubes: An Open-Source Modular Robotics Kit,” Proceedings of the IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, (2007) pp. 3–6.Google Scholar
74. Zykov, V., Phelps, W., Lassabe, N. and Lipson, H., “Molecubes Extended: Diversifying Capabilities of Open-Source Modular Robotics,” Proceedings of the IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, (2008) pp. 22–26.Google Scholar
75. Kirby, B. T., Aksak, B., Campbell, J. D., Hoburg, J. F., Mowry, T. C., Pillai, P. and Goldstein, S. C., “A Modular Robotic System Using Magnetic Force Effectors,” Proceedings of the IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, San Diego, CA (2007) pp. 2787–2793.Google Scholar
76. Davey, J., Kwok, N. and Yim, M., “Emulating Self-Reconfigurable Robots – Design of the SMORES System,” Proceedings of the IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, (2012) pp. 4464–4469.Google Scholar
77. Romanishin, J. W., Gilpin, K. and Rus, D., “M-Blocks: Momentum-Driven, Magnetic Modular Robots,” Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, (2013) pp. 4288–4295.Google Scholar