Human-Centered Design and Control of Vine Robots for Disaster Scenarios
Abstract
This project aimed to increase efficacy of humanitarian assistance and disaster relief through robust and portable designs and advanced human-robot interaction applied to a new class of soft continuum robots: Vine Robots. In contrast to traditional robots that move based on flight or repeated contacts with a surface (e.g., walking, running, rolling), vine robots are soft robots that achieve movement through growth, on time scales much faster than their biological counterparts. They achieve this growth by eversion, or turning inside out, of their body material due to internal fluid pressure. As vine robots grow, they expand from the tip, allowing them to use their newly established stem as a base from which to traverse gaps, climb vertically, and grow to over 100 times their original length. Because they do not rely on contact with the environment to achieve movement, they can navigate over rough, slippery, sticky, and sharp terrain. Growth from the tip of a robot also enables it to withstand being stepped on and extend through gaps a quarter of its height. Within its region of growth, a vine robot can provide not only sensing, but also a physical conduit, such as a water hose that grows to a fire or an oxygen tube that grows to a trapped disaster victim. Vine robots could also protect trapped victims and infrastructure by gently wrapping themselves around unstable rubble or grasping a gas valve to be pulled shut. A main goal of this project has been the development of new vine robot designs and capabilities for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 11, 2022
- Accession Number
- AD1189095
Entities
People
- Allison M. Okamura
- Jee-Hwan Ryu
Organizations
- KAIST
- Stanford University