Keywords
Citation
Rigelsford, J. (2004), "Reconfigurable robot", Industrial Robot, Vol. 31 No. 5. https://doi.org/10.1108/ir.2004.04931ead.008
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2004, Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Reconfigurable robot
Reconfigurable robot
Keywords: Robots, Control, Patents
Applicant: Xerox Corporation, USAPatent number: US6,725,128Publication date: 20 April 2004Title: Self-reconfigurable Robot
The invention relates to systems and methods for controlling a self-reconfigurable robot and comprises a plurality of modules used to create a structure required to achieve a given task. Additionally, it provides a self-reconfigurable robot having a plurality of modules where control of the modules can be expressed largely in terms of the local environment, and whereby for each module, agent-based control is used to achieve a suitable shape without needing to precisely specify the exact position of each module. Each module is made of a cubic shape with six faces, each face including an arm for expansion and contraction with another module is a self-contained unit with its own processing, sensing and actuation systems.
A modular self-reconfigurable robot can respond to a wide range of tasks and unpredictable environments, when compared to conventional designs.