Improvements in Snake Robot locomotion with Obstacle aided locomotion

Abstract

ABSTRACT This thesis presents a snake robot’s design, development, and evaluation for disas- ter recovery applications. The snake robot is a unique robotic platform that can navigate through narrow and confined spaces, making it suitable for search and rescue missions in disaster scenarios such as earthquakes and collapsed buildings The thesis begins by presenting a comprehensive review of the existing snake robots and their applications in disaster recovery scenarios. The design consider- ations for developing a snake robot for such applications are discussed in detail, including the choice of materials, actuation systems, and control strategies. The design is driven by following objectives: • Reduce the cost of creating a snake inspired robot. • Platform and the robot be based on well known platforms ROS and Python for wide adoption. • The robot is usable in most type terrains and can deal with unexpected obstructions. The proposed snake robot is developed as a unit with components that allow for easy customization and repair. The robot is equipped with various sensors, includ- ing cameras and microphones, to aid in search and rescue operations. A novel con- trol strategy combines machine learning and learning from manual tele-operation to enable the snake robot to navigate complex environments autonomously while still allowing human operators to intervene when necessary. The performance of the snake robot is evaluated through a series of experiments that simulate disaster scenarios. It is divided into various parameters like how ef- fectively the snake robot is able to maneuver through narrow confined spaces, how effectively is it able to identify distress with images and sounds amongst others. In conclusion, the thesis demonstrates that the snake robot as a platform has a potential to improve the responsiveness for search and rescue missions in challenging environments