Paper ID: 2202.03243

Air-Releasable Soft Robots for Explosive Ordnance Disposal

Tyler C. Looney, Nathan M. Savard, Gus T. Teran, Archie G. Milligan, Ryley I. Wheelock, Michael Scalise, Daniel P. Perno, Gregory C. Lewin, Carlo Pinciroli, Cagdas D. Onal, Markus P. Nemitz

The demining of landmines using drones is challenging; air-releasable payloads are typically non-intelligent (e.g., water balloons or explosives) and deploying them at even low altitudes (~6 meter) is inherently inaccurate due to complex deployment trajectories and constrained visual awareness by the drone pilot. Soft robotics offers a unique approach for aerial demining, namely due to the robust, low-cost, and lightweight designs of soft robots. Instead of non-intelligent payloads, here, we propose the use of air-releasable soft robots for demining. We developed a full system consisting of an unmanned aerial vehicle retrofitted to a soft robot carrier including a custom-made deployment mechanism, and an air-releasable, lightweight (296 g), untethered soft hybrid robot with integrated electronics that incorporates a new type of a vacuum-based flasher roller actuator system. We demonstrate a deployment cycle in which the drone drops the soft robotic hybrid from an altitude of 4.5 m meters and after which the robot approaches a dummy landmine. By deploying soft robots at points of interest, we can transition soft robotic technologies from the laboratory to real-world environments.

Submitted: Feb 7, 2022