A robotic spacecraft is an unmanned spacecraft, usually under telerobotic control. A robotic spacecraft designed to make scientific research measurements is often called a space probe. Many space missions are more suited to telerobotic rather than manned operation, due to lower cost and lower risk factors. In addition, some planetary destinations such as Venus or the vicinity of Jupiter are too hostile for human survival, given current technology. Outer planets such as Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune are too distant to reach with current manned spaceflight technology, so telerobotic probes are the only way to explore them.
Many artificial satellites are robotic spacecraft, as are many landers and rovers.
History
The first robotic spacecraft was launched by the Soviet Union (USSR) on 22 July 1951, a suborbital flight carrying two dogs Dezik and Tsygan. Four other such flights were made through the fall of 1951.
The first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, was put into a 215-by-939-kilometer (116 by 507 nmi) Earth orbit by the USSR) on 4 October 1957. On 3 November 1957, the USSR orbited Sputnik 2. Weighing 113 kilograms (249 lb), Sputnik 2 carried the first living animal into orbit, the dog Laika. Since the satellite was not designed to detach from its launch vehicle's upper stage, the total mass in orbit was 508.3 kilograms (1,121 lb).
In a close race with the Soviets, the United States launched its first artificial satellite, Explorer 1, into a 193-by-1,373-nautical-mile (357 by 2,543 km) orbit on 31 January 1958. Explorer I was a 80.75-inch (205.1 cm) long by 6.00-inch (15.2 cm) diameter cylinder weighing 30.8 pounds (14.0 kg), compared to Sputnik 1, a 58-centimeter (23 in) sphere which weighed 83.6 kilograms (184 lb). Explorer 1 carried sensors which confirmed the existence of the Van Allen belts, a major scientific discovery at the time, while Sputnik 1 carried no scientific sensors. On 17 March 1958, the US orbited its second satellite, Vanguard 1, which was about the size of a grapefruit, and remains in a 360-by-2,080-nautical-mile (670 by 3,850 km) orbit as of 2016.
Nine other countries have successfully launched satellites using their own launch vehicles: France (1965), Japan and China (1970), the United Kingdom (1971), India (1980), Israel (1988), Iran (2009), North Korea (2012), and New Zealand (2018).
Design
In spacecraft design, the United States Air Force considers a vehicle to consist of the mission payload and the bus (or platform). The bus provides physical structure, thermal control, electrical power, attitude control and telemetry, tracking and commanding.
JPL divides the "flight system" of a spacecraft into subsystems. These include:
Structure
This is the physical backbone structure. It:
provides overall mechanical integrity of the spacecraft
ensures spacecraft components are supported and can withstand launch loads
Data handling
This is sometimes referred to as the command and data subsystem. It is often responsible for:
command sequence storage
maintaining the spacecraft clock
collecting and reporting spacecraft telemetry data (e.g. spacecraft health)
collecting and reporting mission data (e.g. photographic images)
Attitude determination and control
This system is mainly responsible for the correct spacecraft's orientation in space (attitude) despite external disturbance-gravity gradient effects, magnetic-field torques, solar radiation and aerodynamic drag; in addition it may be required to reposition movable parts, such as antennas and solar arrays.
Landing on hazardous terrain
In planetary exploration missions involving robotic spacecraft, there are three key parts in the processes of landing on the surface of the planet to ensure a safe and successful landing. This process includes a entry into the planetary gravity field and atmosphere, a descent through that atmosphere towards a intended/targeted region of scientific value, and a safe landing that guarantees the integrity of the instrumentation on the craft is preserved. While the robotic spacecraft is going through those parts, it must also be capable of estimating its position compared to the surface in order to ensure reliable control of itself and its ability to maneuver well. The robotic spacecraft must also efficiently perform hazard assessment and trajectory adjustments in real time to avoid hazards. To achieve this, the robotic spacecraft requires accurate knowledge of where the spacecraft is located relative to the surface (localization), what may pose as hazards from the terrain (hazard assessment), and where the spacecraft should presently be headed (hazard avoidance). Without the capability for operations for localization, hazard assessment, and avoidance, the robotic spacecraft becomes unsafe and can easily enter dangerous situations such as surface collisions, undesirable fuel consumption levels, and/or unsafe maneuvers.
Entry, descent, and landing
Integrated sensing incorporates an image transformation algorithm to interpret the immediate imagery land data, perform a real-time detection and avoidance of terrain hazards that may impede safe landing, and increase the accuracy of landing at a desired site of interest using landmark localization techniques. Integrated sensing completes these tasks by relying on pre-recorded information and cameras to understand its location and determine its position and whether it is correct or needs to make any corrections (localization). The cameras are also used to detect any possible hazards whether it is increased fuel consumption or it is a physical hazard such as a poor landing spot in a crater or cliff side that would make landing very not ideal (hazard assessment).
Telecommunications
Components in the telecommunications subsystem include radio antennas, transmitters and receivers. These may be used to communicate with ground stations on Earth, or with other spacecraft.
Electrical power
The supply of electric power on spacecraft generally come from photovoltaic (solar) cells or from a radioisotope thermoelectric generator. Other components of the subsystem include batteries for storing power and distribution circuitry that connects components to the power sources.
Temperature control and protection from the environment
Spacecraft are often protected from temperature fluctuations with insulation. Some spacecraft use mirrors and sunshades for additional protection from solar heating. They also often need shielding from micrometeoroids and orbital debris.
Propulsion
Spacecraft propulsion is a method that allows a spacecraft to travel through space by generating thrust to push it forward. However, there isn’t one universally used propulsion system: monopropellant, bipropellant, ion propulsion, and etc. Each propulsion system generates thrust in slightly different ways with each system having its own advantages and disadvantages. But, most spacecraft propulsion today is based on rocket engines. The general idea behind rocket engines is that when an oxidizer meets the fuel source, there is explosive release of energy and heat at high speeds, which propels the spacecraft forward. This happens due to one basic principle known as Newton’s Third Law. According to Newton, “to every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.” As the energy and heat is being released from the back of the spacecraft, gas particles are being pushed around to allow the spacecraft to propel forward. The main reason behind the usage of rocket engine today is because rockets are the most powerful form of propulsion there is.
Monopropellant
For a propulsion system to work, there is usually always an oxidizer line and a fuel line. This way, the spacecraft propulsion is controlled. But in a monopropellant propulsion, there is no need for an oxidizer line and only requires the fuel line. This works due to the oxidizer being chemically bonded into the fuel molecule itself. But for the propulsion system to be controlled, the combustion of the fuel can only occur due to a presence of a catalyst. This is quite advantageous due to making the rocket engine lighter and cheaper, easy to control, and more reliable. But, the downfall is that the chemical is very dangerous to manufacture, store, and transport.
Bipropellant
A bipropellant propulsion system is a rocket engine that uses a liquid propellent. This means both the oxidizer and fuel line are in liquid states. This system is unique because it requires no ignition system, the two liquids would spontaneously combust as soon as they come into contact with each other and produces the propulsion to push the ship forward. The main benefit for having this technology is because that these kinds of liquids have relatively high density, which allows the volume of the propellent tank to be small, therefore increasing space efficacy. The downside is the same as that of monopropellant propulsion system: very dangerous to manufacture, store, and transport.
Ion
An ion propulsion system is a type of engine that generates thrust by the means of electron bombardment or the acceleration of ions. By shooting high-energy electrons to a propellant atom (neutrally charge), it removes electrons from the propellant atom and this results the propellant atom becoming a positively charged atom. The positively charged ions are guided to pass through positively charged grids that contains thousands of precise aligned holes are running at high voltages. Then, the aligned positively charged ions accelerates through a negative charged accelerator grid that further increases the speed of the ions up to 90,000 mph. The momentum of these positively charged ions provides the thrust to propel the spacecraft forward. The advantage of having this kind of propulsion is that it is incredibly efficient in maintaining constant velocity, which is needed for deep-space travel. However, the amount of thrust produced is extremely low and that it needs a lot of electrical power to operate.
Mechanical devices
Mechanical components often need to be moved for deployment after launch or prior to landing. In addition to the use of motors, many one-time movements are controlled by pyrotechnic devices.
Robotic vs. unmanned spacecraft
Robotic spacecraft are specifically designed system for a specific hostile environment. Due to their specification for a particular environment, it varies greatly in complexity and capabilities. While an unmanned spacecraft is a spacecraft without personnel or crew and is operated by automatic (proceeds with an action without human intervention) or remote control (with human intervention). The term 'unmanned spacecraft' does not imply that the spacecraft is robotic.
Control
Robotic spacecraft use telemetry to radio back to Earth acquired data and vehicle status information. Although generally referred to as "remotely controlled" or "telerobotic", the earliest orbital spacecraft – such as Sputnik 1 and Explorer 1 – did not receive control signals from Earth. Soon after these first spacecraft, command systems were developed to allow remote control from the ground. Increased autonomy is important for distant probes where the light travel time prevents rapid decision and control from Earth. Newer probes such as Cassini–Huygens and the Mars Exploration Rovers are highly autonomous and use on-board computers to operate independently for extended periods of time.
Space probes
A space probe is a robotic spacecraft that does not orbit Earth, but instead, explores further into outer space. A space probe may approach the Moon; travel through interplanetary space; flyby, orbit, or land on other planetary bodies; or enter interstellar space.
SpaceX’s Dragon
An example of a fully robotic spacecraft in the modern world would be SpaceX’s Dragon. The SpaceX Dragon is a robotic spacecraft designed to send not only cargo to Earth’s orbit, but also humans as well. The SpaceX Dragon’s total height is 7.2 m (23.6 ft) with a diameter of 3.7 m (12 ft). The total launch payload mass is 6,000 kg (13,228 lbs) and a total return mass of 3,000 kg (6,614 lbs), along with a total launch payload volume of 25m^3 (883 ft^3) and a total return payload volume of 11m^3 (388 ft^3). The total duration of the Dragon in Earth’s orbit is two years.
In 2012 the SpaceX Dragon made history by becoming the first commercial robotic spacecraft to deliver cargo to the International Space Station and to safely return cargo to Earth in the same trip. This feat that the Dragon made was only achieved previously by governments. Currently the Dragon is meant to transfer cargo because of its capability of returning significant amounts of cargo to Earth despite it originally being designed to carry humans.
A space probe is a scientific space exploration mission in which a spacecraft leaves Earth and explores space. It may approach the Moon, enter interplanetary, flyby or orbit other bodies, or approach interstellar space.
Robotic spacecraft service vehicles
MDA Space Infrastructure Servicing vehicle — an in-space refueling depot and service spacecraft for communication satellites in geosynchronous orbit. Launch planned for 2015.[needs update]
Mission Extension Vehicle is an alternative approach that does not utilize in-space RCS fuel transfer. Rather, it would connect to the target satellite in the same way as MDA SIS, and then use "its own thrusters to supply attitude control for the target."
Source from Wikipedia
2018年11月13日星期二
2018年11月12日星期一
Nanorobotics
Nanorobotics is an emerging technology field creating machines or robots whose components are at or near the scale of a nanometre (10−9 meters). More specifically, nanorobotics (as opposed to microrobotics) refers to the nanotechnology engineering discipline of designing and building nanorobots, with devices ranging in size from 0.1–10 micrometres and constructed of nanoscale or molecular components. The terms nanobot, nanoid, nanite, nanomachine, or nanomite have also been used to describe such devices currently under research and development.
Nanomachines are largely in the research and development phase, but some primitive molecular machines and nanomotors have been tested. An example is a sensor having a switch approximately 1.5 nanometers across, able to count specific molecules in a chemical sample. The first useful applications of nanomachines may be in nanomedicine. For example, biological machines could be used to identify and destroy cancer cells. Another potential application is the detection of toxic chemicals, and the measurement of their concentrations, in the environment. Rice University has demonstrated a single-molecule car developed by a chemical process and including Buckminsterfullerenes (buckyballs) for wheels. It is actuated by controlling the environmental temperature and by positioning a scanning tunneling microscope tip.
Another definition is a robot that allows precise interactions with nanoscale objects, or can manipulate with nanoscale resolution. Such devices are more related to microscopy or scanning probe microscopy, instead of the description of nanorobots as molecular machine. Using the microscopy definition, even a large apparatus such as an atomic force microscope can be considered a nanorobotic instrument when configured to perform nanomanipulation. For this viewpoint, macroscale robots or microrobots that can move with nanoscale precision can also be considered nanorobots.
Nanorobotics theory
According to Richard Feynman, it was his former graduate student and collaborator Albert Hibbs who originally suggested to him (circa 1959) the idea of a medical use for Feynman's theoretical micromachines (see nanomachine). Hibbs suggested that certain repair machines might one day be reduced in size to the point that it would, in theory, be possible to (as Feynman put it) "swallow the surgeon". The idea was incorporated into Feynman's 1959 essay There's Plenty of Room at the Bottom.
Since nanorobots would be microscopic in size, it would probably be necessary for very large numbers of them to work together to perform microscopic and macroscopic tasks. These nanorobot swarms, both those unable to replicate (as in utility fog) and those able to replicate unconstrainedly in the natural environment (as in grey goo and its less common variants, such as synthetic biology or utility fog), are found in many science fiction stories, such as the Borg nanoprobes in Star Trek and The Outer Limits episode "The New Breed".
Some proponents of nanorobotics, in reaction to the grey goo scenarios that they earlier helped to propagate, hold the view that nanorobots able to replicate outside of a restricted factory environment do not form a necessary part of a purported productive nanotechnology, and that the process of self-replication, were it ever to be developed, could be made inherently safe. They further assert that their current plans for developing and using molecular manufacturing do not in fact include free-foraging replicators.
The most detailed theoretical discussion of nanorobotics, including specific design issues such as sensing, power communication, navigation, manipulation, locomotion, and onboard computation, has been presented in the medical context of nanomedicine by Robert Freitas. Some of these discussions remain at the level of unbuildable generality and do not approach the level of detailed engineering.
Legal and ethical implications
Open technology
A document with a proposal on nanobiotech development using open design technology methods, as in open-source hardware and open-source software, has been addressed to the United Nations General Assembly. According to the document sent to the United Nations, in the same way that open source has in recent years accelerated the development of computer systems, a similar approach should benefit the society at large and accelerate nanorobotics development. The use of nanobiotechnology should be established as a human heritage for the coming generations, and developed as an open technology based on ethical practices for peaceful purposes. Open technology is stated as a fundamental key for such an aim.
Nanorobot race
In the same ways that technology research and development drove the space race and nuclear arms race, a race for nanorobots is occurring. There is plenty of ground allowing nanorobots to be included among the emerging technologies. Some of the reasons are that large corporations, such as General Electric, Hewlett-Packard, Synopsys, Northrop Grumman and Siemens have been recently working in the development and research of nanorobots; surgeons are getting involved and starting to propose ways to apply nanorobots for common medical procedures; universities and research institutes were granted funds by government agencies exceeding $2 billion towards research developing nanodevices for medicine; bankers are also strategically investing with the intent to acquire beforehand rights and royalties on future nanorobots commercialisation. Some aspects of nanorobot litigation and related issues linked to monopoly have already arisen. A large number of patents has been granted recently on nanorobots, done mostly for patent agents, companies specialized solely on building patent portfolios, and lawyers. After a long series of patents and eventually litigations, see for example the Invention of Radio, or the War of Currents, emerging fields of technology tend to become a monopoly, which normally is dominated by large corporations.
Manufacturing approaches
Manufacturing nanomachines assembled from molecular components is a very challenging task. Because of the level of difficulty, many engineers and scientists continue working cooperatively across multidisciplinary approaches to achieve breakthroughs in this new area of development. Thus, it is quite understandable the importance of the following distinct techniques currently applied towards manufacturing nanorobots:
Biochip
The joint use of nanoelectronics, photolithography, and new biomaterials provides a possible approach to manufacturing nanorobots for common medical uses, such as surgical instrumentation, diagnosis, and drug delivery. This method for manufacturing on nanotechnology scale is in use in the electronics industry since 2008. So, practical nanorobots should be integrated as nanoelectronics devices, which will allow tele-operation and advanced capabilities for medical instrumentation.
Nubots
A nucleic acid robot (nubot) is an organic molecular machine at the nanoscale. DNA structure can provide means to assemble 2D and 3D nanomechanical devices. DNA based machines can be activated using small molecules, proteins and other molecules of DNA. Biological circuit gates based on DNA materials have been engineered as molecular machines to allow in-vitro drug delivery for targeted health problems. Such material based systems would work most closely to smart biomaterial drug system delivery, while not allowing precise in vivo teleoperation of such engineered prototypes.
Surface-bound systems
Several reports have demonstrated the attachment of synthetic molecular motors to surfaces. These primitive nanomachines have been shown to undergo machine-like motions when confined to the surface of a macroscopic material. The surface anchored motors could potentially be used to move and position nanoscale materials on a surface in the manner of a conveyor belt.
Positional nanoassembly
Nanofactory Collaboration, founded by Robert Freitas and Ralph Merkle in 2000 and involving 23 researchers from 10 organizations and 4 countries, focuses on developing a practical research agenda specifically aimed at developing positionally-controlled diamond mechanosynthesis and a diamondoid nanofactory that would have the capability of building diamondoid medical nanorobots.
Biohybrids
The emerging field of bio-hybrid systems combines biological and synthetic structural elements for biomedical or robotic applications. The constituting elements of bio-nanoelectromechanical systems (BioNEMS) are of nanoscale size, for example DNA, proteins or nanostructured mechanical parts. Thiol-ene ebeam resist allow the direct writing of nanoscale features, followed by the functionalization of the natively reactive resist surface with biomolecules. Other approaches use a biodegradable material attached to magnetic particles that allow them to be guided around the body.
Bacteria-based
This approach proposes the use of biological microorganisms, like the bacterium Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhimurium. Thus the model uses a flagellum for propulsion purposes. Electromagnetic fields normally control the motion of this kind of biological integrated device. Chemists at the University of Nebraska have created a humidity gauge by fusing a bacterium to a silicone computer chip.
Virus-based
Retroviruses can be retrained to attach to cells and replace DNA. They go through a process called reverse transcription to deliver genetic packaging in a vector. Usually, these devices are Pol – Gag genes of the virus for the Capsid and Delivery system. This process is called retroviral gene therapy, having the ability to re-engineer cellular DNA by usage of viral vectors. This approach has appeared in the form of retroviral, adenoviral, and lentiviral gene delivery systems. These gene therapy vectors have been used in cats to send genes into the genetically modified organism (GMO), causing it to display the trait.
3D printing
3D printing is the process by which a three-dimensional structure is built through the various processes of additive manufacturing. Nanoscale 3D printing involves many of the same process, incorporated at a much smaller scale. To print a structure in the 5-400 µm scale, the precision of the 3D printing machine is improved greatly. A two-steps process of 3D printing, using a 3D printing and laser etched plates method was incorporated as an improvement technique. To be more precise at a nanoscale, the 3D printing process uses a laser etching machine, which etches into each plate the details needed for the segment of nanorobot. The plate is then transferred to the 3D printer, which fills the etched regions with the desired nanoparticle. The 3D printing process is repeated until the nanorobot is built from the bottom up. This 3D printing process has many benefits. First, it increases the overall accuracy of the printing process. Second, it has the potential to create functional segments of a nanorobot. The 3D printer uses a liquid resin, which is hardened at precisely the correct spots by a focused laser beam. The focal point of the laser beam is guided through the resin by movable mirrors and leaves behind a hardened line of solid polymer, just a few hundred nanometers wide. This fine resolution enables the creation of intricately structured sculptures as tiny as a grain of sand. This process takes place by using photoactive resins, which are hardened by the laser at an extremely small scale to create the structure. This process is quick by nanoscale 3D printing standards. Ultra-small features can be made with the 3D micro-fabrication technique used in multiphoton photopolymerisation. This approach uses a focused laser to trace the desired 3D object into a block of gel. Due to the nonlinear nature of photo excitation, the gel is cured to a solid only in the places where the laser was focused while the remaining gel is then washed away. Feature sizes of under 100 nm are easily produced, as well as complex structures with moving and interlocked parts.
Potential uses
Nanomedicine
Potential uses for nanorobotics in medicine include early diagnosis and targeted drug-delivery for cancer, biomedical instrumentation, surgery, pharmacokinetics, monitoring of diabetes, and health care.
In such plans, future medical nanotechnology is expected to employ nanorobots injected into the patient to perform work at a cellular level. Such nanorobots intended for use in medicine should be non-replicating, as replication would needlessly increase device complexity, reduce reliability, and interfere with the medical mission.
Nanotechnology provides a wide range of new technologies for developing customized means to optimize the delivery of pharmaceutical drugs. Today, harmful side effects of treatments such as chemotherapy are commonly a result of drug delivery methods that don't pinpoint their intended target cells accurately. Researchers at Harvard and MIT, however, have been able to attach special RNA strands, measuring nearly 10 nm in diameter, to nanoparticles, filling them with a chemotherapy drug. These RNA strands are attracted to cancer cells. When the nanoparticle encounters a cancer cell, it adheres to it, and releases the drug into the cancer cell. This directed method of drug delivery has great potential for treating cancer patients while avoiding negative effects (commonly associated with improper drug delivery). The first demonstration of nanomotors operating in living organism was carried out in 2014 at University of California, San Diego. MRI-guided nanocapsules are one potential precursor to nanorobots.
Another useful application of nanorobots is assisting in the repair of tissue cells alongside white blood cells. Recruiting inflammatory cells or white blood cells (which include neutrophil granulocytes, lymphocytes, monocytes, and mast cells) to the affected area is the first response of tissues to injury. Because of their small size, nanorobots could attach themselves to the surface of recruited white cells, to squeeze their way out through the walls of blood vessels and arrive at the injury site, where they can assist in the tissue repair process. Certain substances could possibly be used to accelerate the recovery.
The science behind this mechanism is quite complex. Passage of cells across the blood endothelium, a process known as transmigration, is a mechanism involving engagement of cell surface receptors to adhesion molecules, active force exertion and dilation of the vessel walls and physical deformation of the migrating cells. By attaching themselves to migrating inflammatory cells, the robots can in effect “hitch a ride” across the blood vessels, bypassing the need for a complex transmigration mechanism of their own.
As of 2016, in the United States, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates nanotechnology on the basis of size.
Soutik Betal, during his doctoral research at the University of Texas, San Antonio developed nanocomposite particles that are controlled remotely by an electromagnetic field. This series of nanorobots that are now enlisted in the Guinness World Record, can be used to interact with the biological cells. Scientists suggest that this technology can be used for the treatment of cancer.
Cultural references
The Nanites are characters on the TV show Mystery Science Theater 3000. They're self-replicating, bio-engineered organisms that work on the ship and reside in the SOL's computer systems. They made their first appearance in season 8.
Nanites are used in a number of episodes in the Netflix series "Travelers". They are programmed and injected into injured people to perform repairs.
Source from Wikipedia
Nanomachines are largely in the research and development phase, but some primitive molecular machines and nanomotors have been tested. An example is a sensor having a switch approximately 1.5 nanometers across, able to count specific molecules in a chemical sample. The first useful applications of nanomachines may be in nanomedicine. For example, biological machines could be used to identify and destroy cancer cells. Another potential application is the detection of toxic chemicals, and the measurement of their concentrations, in the environment. Rice University has demonstrated a single-molecule car developed by a chemical process and including Buckminsterfullerenes (buckyballs) for wheels. It is actuated by controlling the environmental temperature and by positioning a scanning tunneling microscope tip.
Another definition is a robot that allows precise interactions with nanoscale objects, or can manipulate with nanoscale resolution. Such devices are more related to microscopy or scanning probe microscopy, instead of the description of nanorobots as molecular machine. Using the microscopy definition, even a large apparatus such as an atomic force microscope can be considered a nanorobotic instrument when configured to perform nanomanipulation. For this viewpoint, macroscale robots or microrobots that can move with nanoscale precision can also be considered nanorobots.
Nanorobotics theory
According to Richard Feynman, it was his former graduate student and collaborator Albert Hibbs who originally suggested to him (circa 1959) the idea of a medical use for Feynman's theoretical micromachines (see nanomachine). Hibbs suggested that certain repair machines might one day be reduced in size to the point that it would, in theory, be possible to (as Feynman put it) "swallow the surgeon". The idea was incorporated into Feynman's 1959 essay There's Plenty of Room at the Bottom.
Since nanorobots would be microscopic in size, it would probably be necessary for very large numbers of them to work together to perform microscopic and macroscopic tasks. These nanorobot swarms, both those unable to replicate (as in utility fog) and those able to replicate unconstrainedly in the natural environment (as in grey goo and its less common variants, such as synthetic biology or utility fog), are found in many science fiction stories, such as the Borg nanoprobes in Star Trek and The Outer Limits episode "The New Breed".
Some proponents of nanorobotics, in reaction to the grey goo scenarios that they earlier helped to propagate, hold the view that nanorobots able to replicate outside of a restricted factory environment do not form a necessary part of a purported productive nanotechnology, and that the process of self-replication, were it ever to be developed, could be made inherently safe. They further assert that their current plans for developing and using molecular manufacturing do not in fact include free-foraging replicators.
The most detailed theoretical discussion of nanorobotics, including specific design issues such as sensing, power communication, navigation, manipulation, locomotion, and onboard computation, has been presented in the medical context of nanomedicine by Robert Freitas. Some of these discussions remain at the level of unbuildable generality and do not approach the level of detailed engineering.
Legal and ethical implications
Open technology
A document with a proposal on nanobiotech development using open design technology methods, as in open-source hardware and open-source software, has been addressed to the United Nations General Assembly. According to the document sent to the United Nations, in the same way that open source has in recent years accelerated the development of computer systems, a similar approach should benefit the society at large and accelerate nanorobotics development. The use of nanobiotechnology should be established as a human heritage for the coming generations, and developed as an open technology based on ethical practices for peaceful purposes. Open technology is stated as a fundamental key for such an aim.
Nanorobot race
In the same ways that technology research and development drove the space race and nuclear arms race, a race for nanorobots is occurring. There is plenty of ground allowing nanorobots to be included among the emerging technologies. Some of the reasons are that large corporations, such as General Electric, Hewlett-Packard, Synopsys, Northrop Grumman and Siemens have been recently working in the development and research of nanorobots; surgeons are getting involved and starting to propose ways to apply nanorobots for common medical procedures; universities and research institutes were granted funds by government agencies exceeding $2 billion towards research developing nanodevices for medicine; bankers are also strategically investing with the intent to acquire beforehand rights and royalties on future nanorobots commercialisation. Some aspects of nanorobot litigation and related issues linked to monopoly have already arisen. A large number of patents has been granted recently on nanorobots, done mostly for patent agents, companies specialized solely on building patent portfolios, and lawyers. After a long series of patents and eventually litigations, see for example the Invention of Radio, or the War of Currents, emerging fields of technology tend to become a monopoly, which normally is dominated by large corporations.
Manufacturing approaches
Manufacturing nanomachines assembled from molecular components is a very challenging task. Because of the level of difficulty, many engineers and scientists continue working cooperatively across multidisciplinary approaches to achieve breakthroughs in this new area of development. Thus, it is quite understandable the importance of the following distinct techniques currently applied towards manufacturing nanorobots:
Biochip
The joint use of nanoelectronics, photolithography, and new biomaterials provides a possible approach to manufacturing nanorobots for common medical uses, such as surgical instrumentation, diagnosis, and drug delivery. This method for manufacturing on nanotechnology scale is in use in the electronics industry since 2008. So, practical nanorobots should be integrated as nanoelectronics devices, which will allow tele-operation and advanced capabilities for medical instrumentation.
Nubots
A nucleic acid robot (nubot) is an organic molecular machine at the nanoscale. DNA structure can provide means to assemble 2D and 3D nanomechanical devices. DNA based machines can be activated using small molecules, proteins and other molecules of DNA. Biological circuit gates based on DNA materials have been engineered as molecular machines to allow in-vitro drug delivery for targeted health problems. Such material based systems would work most closely to smart biomaterial drug system delivery, while not allowing precise in vivo teleoperation of such engineered prototypes.
Surface-bound systems
Several reports have demonstrated the attachment of synthetic molecular motors to surfaces. These primitive nanomachines have been shown to undergo machine-like motions when confined to the surface of a macroscopic material. The surface anchored motors could potentially be used to move and position nanoscale materials on a surface in the manner of a conveyor belt.
Positional nanoassembly
Nanofactory Collaboration, founded by Robert Freitas and Ralph Merkle in 2000 and involving 23 researchers from 10 organizations and 4 countries, focuses on developing a practical research agenda specifically aimed at developing positionally-controlled diamond mechanosynthesis and a diamondoid nanofactory that would have the capability of building diamondoid medical nanorobots.
Biohybrids
The emerging field of bio-hybrid systems combines biological and synthetic structural elements for biomedical or robotic applications. The constituting elements of bio-nanoelectromechanical systems (BioNEMS) are of nanoscale size, for example DNA, proteins or nanostructured mechanical parts. Thiol-ene ebeam resist allow the direct writing of nanoscale features, followed by the functionalization of the natively reactive resist surface with biomolecules. Other approaches use a biodegradable material attached to magnetic particles that allow them to be guided around the body.
Bacteria-based
This approach proposes the use of biological microorganisms, like the bacterium Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhimurium. Thus the model uses a flagellum for propulsion purposes. Electromagnetic fields normally control the motion of this kind of biological integrated device. Chemists at the University of Nebraska have created a humidity gauge by fusing a bacterium to a silicone computer chip.
Virus-based
Retroviruses can be retrained to attach to cells and replace DNA. They go through a process called reverse transcription to deliver genetic packaging in a vector. Usually, these devices are Pol – Gag genes of the virus for the Capsid and Delivery system. This process is called retroviral gene therapy, having the ability to re-engineer cellular DNA by usage of viral vectors. This approach has appeared in the form of retroviral, adenoviral, and lentiviral gene delivery systems. These gene therapy vectors have been used in cats to send genes into the genetically modified organism (GMO), causing it to display the trait.
3D printing
3D printing is the process by which a three-dimensional structure is built through the various processes of additive manufacturing. Nanoscale 3D printing involves many of the same process, incorporated at a much smaller scale. To print a structure in the 5-400 µm scale, the precision of the 3D printing machine is improved greatly. A two-steps process of 3D printing, using a 3D printing and laser etched plates method was incorporated as an improvement technique. To be more precise at a nanoscale, the 3D printing process uses a laser etching machine, which etches into each plate the details needed for the segment of nanorobot. The plate is then transferred to the 3D printer, which fills the etched regions with the desired nanoparticle. The 3D printing process is repeated until the nanorobot is built from the bottom up. This 3D printing process has many benefits. First, it increases the overall accuracy of the printing process. Second, it has the potential to create functional segments of a nanorobot. The 3D printer uses a liquid resin, which is hardened at precisely the correct spots by a focused laser beam. The focal point of the laser beam is guided through the resin by movable mirrors and leaves behind a hardened line of solid polymer, just a few hundred nanometers wide. This fine resolution enables the creation of intricately structured sculptures as tiny as a grain of sand. This process takes place by using photoactive resins, which are hardened by the laser at an extremely small scale to create the structure. This process is quick by nanoscale 3D printing standards. Ultra-small features can be made with the 3D micro-fabrication technique used in multiphoton photopolymerisation. This approach uses a focused laser to trace the desired 3D object into a block of gel. Due to the nonlinear nature of photo excitation, the gel is cured to a solid only in the places where the laser was focused while the remaining gel is then washed away. Feature sizes of under 100 nm are easily produced, as well as complex structures with moving and interlocked parts.
Potential uses
Nanomedicine
Potential uses for nanorobotics in medicine include early diagnosis and targeted drug-delivery for cancer, biomedical instrumentation, surgery, pharmacokinetics, monitoring of diabetes, and health care.
In such plans, future medical nanotechnology is expected to employ nanorobots injected into the patient to perform work at a cellular level. Such nanorobots intended for use in medicine should be non-replicating, as replication would needlessly increase device complexity, reduce reliability, and interfere with the medical mission.
Nanotechnology provides a wide range of new technologies for developing customized means to optimize the delivery of pharmaceutical drugs. Today, harmful side effects of treatments such as chemotherapy are commonly a result of drug delivery methods that don't pinpoint their intended target cells accurately. Researchers at Harvard and MIT, however, have been able to attach special RNA strands, measuring nearly 10 nm in diameter, to nanoparticles, filling them with a chemotherapy drug. These RNA strands are attracted to cancer cells. When the nanoparticle encounters a cancer cell, it adheres to it, and releases the drug into the cancer cell. This directed method of drug delivery has great potential for treating cancer patients while avoiding negative effects (commonly associated with improper drug delivery). The first demonstration of nanomotors operating in living organism was carried out in 2014 at University of California, San Diego. MRI-guided nanocapsules are one potential precursor to nanorobots.
Another useful application of nanorobots is assisting in the repair of tissue cells alongside white blood cells. Recruiting inflammatory cells or white blood cells (which include neutrophil granulocytes, lymphocytes, monocytes, and mast cells) to the affected area is the first response of tissues to injury. Because of their small size, nanorobots could attach themselves to the surface of recruited white cells, to squeeze their way out through the walls of blood vessels and arrive at the injury site, where they can assist in the tissue repair process. Certain substances could possibly be used to accelerate the recovery.
The science behind this mechanism is quite complex. Passage of cells across the blood endothelium, a process known as transmigration, is a mechanism involving engagement of cell surface receptors to adhesion molecules, active force exertion and dilation of the vessel walls and physical deformation of the migrating cells. By attaching themselves to migrating inflammatory cells, the robots can in effect “hitch a ride” across the blood vessels, bypassing the need for a complex transmigration mechanism of their own.
As of 2016, in the United States, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates nanotechnology on the basis of size.
Soutik Betal, during his doctoral research at the University of Texas, San Antonio developed nanocomposite particles that are controlled remotely by an electromagnetic field. This series of nanorobots that are now enlisted in the Guinness World Record, can be used to interact with the biological cells. Scientists suggest that this technology can be used for the treatment of cancer.
Cultural references
The Nanites are characters on the TV show Mystery Science Theater 3000. They're self-replicating, bio-engineered organisms that work on the ship and reside in the SOL's computer systems. They made their first appearance in season 8.
Nanites are used in a number of episodes in the Netflix series "Travelers". They are programmed and injected into injured people to perform repairs.
Source from Wikipedia
Microbotics
Microbotics is the field of miniature robotics, in particular mobile robots with characteristic dimensions less than 1 mm. The term can also be used for robots capable of handling micrometer size components.
History
Microbots were born thanks to the appearance of the microcontroller in the last decade of the 20th century, and the appearance of miniature mechanical systems on silicon (MEMS), although many microbots do not use silicon for mechanical components other than sensors. The earliest research and conceptual design of such small robots was conducted in the early 1970s in (then) classified research for U.S. intelligence agencies. Applications envisioned at that time included prisoner of war rescue assistance and electronic intercept missions. The underlying miniaturization support technologies were not fully developed at that time, so that progress in prototype development was not immediately forthcoming from this early set of calculations and concept design. As of 2008, the smallest microrobots use a Scratch Drive Actuator.
The development of wireless connections, especially Wi-Fi (i.e. in domotic networks) has greatly increased the communication capacity of microbots, and consequently their ability to coordinate with other microbots to carry out more complex tasks. Indeed, much recent research has focused on microbot communication, including a 1,024 robot swarm at Harvard University that assembles itself into various shapes; and manufacturing microbots at SRI International for DARPA's "MicroFactory for Macro Products" program that can build lightweight, high-strength structures.
Design considerations
While the 'micro' prefix has been used subjectively to mean small, standardizing on length scales avoids confusion. Thus a nanorobot would have characteristic dimensions at or below 1 micrometer, or manipulate components on the 1 to 1000 nm size range. A microrobot would have characteristic dimensions less than 1 millimeter, a millirobot would have dimensions less than a cm, a minirobot would have dimensions less than 10 cm (4 in), and a small robot would have dimensions less than 100 cm (39 in).
Due to their small size, microbots are potentially very cheap, and could be used in large numbers (swarm robotics) to explore environments which are too small or too dangerous for people or larger robots. It is expected that microbots will be useful in applications such as looking for survivors in collapsed buildings after an earthquake, or crawling through the digestive tract. What microbots lack in brawn or computational power, they can make up for by using large numbers, as in swarms of microbots.
The way microrobots move around is a function of their purpose and necessary size. At submicron sizes, the physical world demands rather bizarre ways of getting around. The Reynolds number for airborne robots is close to unity; the viscous forces dominate the inertial forces, so “flying” could use the viscosity of air, rather than Bernoulli's principle of lift. Robots moving through fluids may require rotating flagella like the motile form of E. coli. Hopping is stealthy and energy-efficient; it allows the robot to negotiate the surfaces of a variety of terrains. Pioneering calculations (Solem 1994) examined possible behaviours based on physical realities.
One of the major challenges in developing a microrobot is to achieve motion using a very limited power supply. The microrobots can use a small lightweight battery source like a coin cell or can scavenge power from the surrounding environment in the form of vibration or light energy. Microrobots are also now using biological motors as power sources, such as flagellated Serratia marcescens, to draw chemical power from the surrounding fluid to actuate the robotic device. These biorobots can be directly controlled by stimuli such as chemotaxis or galvanotaxis with several control schemes available. A popular alternative to an on-board battery is to power the robots using externally induced power. Examples include the use of electromagnetic fields, ultrasound and light to activate and control micro robots.
Size and definition
The prefix " micro " has been used a lot to subjectively designate small robots, but very variable sizes. A project to standardize names corresponding to size scales avoids confusion. So:
a nanorobot has dimensions equal to or less than 1 micrometer, or allows to manipulate components in the range of 1 to 1000 nm in size.
A micro-robot would have characteristic dimensions of less than 1 millimeter,
a millirobot would have dimensions less than one cm (it is measured in millimeters),
a minirobot would have dimensions less than 10 cm,
a small robot would have dimensions less than 100 cm.
Specific conditions for the development of microrobotics
The development of microbots involves better understanding and control of certain physical phenomena at play at these scales, because a micro-robot is subjected to forces that are of great importance at micrometric scales and that would not disturb an object of larger size;
Van der Waals force,
static electricity,
surface tension,
breath of air,
more exacerbated and brutal effects of solar heat or cold, condensation, etc.).
Microrobotics includes the study of manufacturing processes (micro-systems or even nano-systems, including micro- or nanoelectronics) required for very small scale elements.
The Biomimicry is a discipline that inspires microrobotics,
Micro-mechanics
It must allow the robot to move and interact with its environment, for example:
Of haptics that allow the robot to adhere to a robot, and possibly to grasp objects, to assemble another microrobot, or be anchored to a substrate;
of micromotors enabling mobile elements to move along one or more degrees of freedom;
micro- gyroscopes or alternative devices performing similar functions are searched;
innovative modes of travel; For example, as gerris do, microbots can already move on the water taking advantage of the surface tension of this liquid "substrate". We also try to mimic the suckers of the geckos, so as to allow a robot of several grams or tens of grams to walk on the ceiling or on any support (Program Geckohair Nanolab of Carnegy Mellon University). Students work on adhesion systems adapting to varying degrees of slope, allowing a suspended walk (on the ceiling, under a sheet...).
Biomimetic
A source of inspiration for robotics is Nature itself which tested very many mechanisms and behaviors, some interested robotics. Mimicking the functioning of neural networks and nerve centers and central generators of the spinal cord of primitive animals can already imitate certain mechanisms such as walking, swimming, running, crawling. The muscle groups are replaced by servomotors, but they are animated by reproducing the movements and the rhythm of walking, swimming, crawling or running according to the pulses distributed to computer microcircuits that mimic the nervous network.
Imitation sometimes goes even further. for example:
Nanolab works to identify and reproduce some highly adhesive colloidal molecules synthesized by animals (snails, slugs, some Coleoptera can strongly but temporarily adhere to a support thanks to such molecules). It develops an instrumentation adapted to the measurement of the performances of this type of adhesive.
the nanolab has produced a small tank-shaped robot with adhesive caterpillars that can climb onto the walls by sticking to it;
Nanolab has also developed Adhesive micro-Fibers allowing a very reinforced adhesion on a non horizontal plane, but a performance that is far from being able to reproduce is the capacity of living systems to heal, feed and reproduce, capacities who also pose new ethical questions that go beyond the usual field of bioethics.
A robot inspired by the salamander evolves easily from an aquatic to terrestrial environment; A chicken may continue to run reflexively with his head cut off, showing that the spine and spinal cord contain the essential motor centers.
Robots (salamander or snake) mimic crawling 8. On this principle, Joseph Ayers (Northeastern University in Boston) has also developed robots that mimic the movements of lamprey and lobster.
Risks and limitations
One of the risks of biomimetics is that robots too much like animals are confused with their models and hunted by real predators.
Microelectronics
The microprocessor allows the execution of computer software giving autonomy to the robot. Very low power microprocessors are needed for microbots because they have to stay light and can not carry a significant source of energy with them.
Biomechanics
Researchers have managed to animate a robot, or more precisely to react the robot to obstacles or light through cultures of rat neurons.
Micro- or nano-sensors
They must allow the robot to situate itself (or locate it) in its environment;
These are, for example, light-reacting cells, temperature sensors, pressure sensors, wave sensors, radio antennas, and so on. even a micro- camera.
Possible uses
It is hoped that they can automatically perform tasks that are dangerous, painful, repetitive or impossible for humans (in small spaces, in a vacuum), or tasks that are simpler but that perform them better than a human being would do.
Prospectivists imagine that they can be used as
industrial and technical robot (able for example to build very small parts or mechanisms, to diagnose or repair the inside of a machine without disassembling it, to inspect a piping from the inside, etc. One imagines them possibly capable of work in a vacuum or in the absence of air, etc.)
robot vacuum cleaner or household smaller and more discreet than those that currently exist
playful robot (teaching robots to program... For the moment, they exist only in the form of toys with the image of robots, but which are not themselves) or pedagogical robots type BEAM (acronym "Aesthetic and Mechanical Electronic Biology") are robots that are not very intelligent, without a microcontroller or embedded program of any kind; A spring or a simple elastic can be a source of mechanical energy for small experimental projects.
Medical robot or medical assistance. a micro-robot could perhaps one day operate in a living organism.
Spatial micro-probes or micro-robots to be sent into space to save the volume occupied and the take-away load in space exploration
Autonomy
To be autonomous, the micro-robot must have:
sufficiently efficient sensors (micro or nanosensors)
energy autonomy that requires efficient micro-batteries, low energy consumption or the ability to find and exploit an external source of energy (solar, microwave beam, hydrogen source supplying its hydrogen fuel cell, biomimetic ability to extract energy from organic matter..). One way to save energy is to ensure that the various functions of a microrobot are activated only when necessary, and optimally. The rest of the time they are put in standby, which does not possibly prevent it from moving in a passive way (carried by the wind, the current, a vehicle..)
an embedded intelligence system (individual or collective in the case of robots with complementary functions working in concert, in the manner of ants of an ant hill) and / or communication allowing interactions or remote control.
The instructional program must be sophisticated enough to respond to the occurrence of simple events and changes in the environment (stimuli) and respond to them (individually or collectively, as would be done for example by ants in an anthill) by appropriate reactions..
Microbots in literature and cinema
Various authors of science fiction and cinema use in their novels, news or films micro or even nanobots, for example in the form of micro-drones.
Source from Wikipedia
History
Microbots were born thanks to the appearance of the microcontroller in the last decade of the 20th century, and the appearance of miniature mechanical systems on silicon (MEMS), although many microbots do not use silicon for mechanical components other than sensors. The earliest research and conceptual design of such small robots was conducted in the early 1970s in (then) classified research for U.S. intelligence agencies. Applications envisioned at that time included prisoner of war rescue assistance and electronic intercept missions. The underlying miniaturization support technologies were not fully developed at that time, so that progress in prototype development was not immediately forthcoming from this early set of calculations and concept design. As of 2008, the smallest microrobots use a Scratch Drive Actuator.
The development of wireless connections, especially Wi-Fi (i.e. in domotic networks) has greatly increased the communication capacity of microbots, and consequently their ability to coordinate with other microbots to carry out more complex tasks. Indeed, much recent research has focused on microbot communication, including a 1,024 robot swarm at Harvard University that assembles itself into various shapes; and manufacturing microbots at SRI International for DARPA's "MicroFactory for Macro Products" program that can build lightweight, high-strength structures.
Design considerations
While the 'micro' prefix has been used subjectively to mean small, standardizing on length scales avoids confusion. Thus a nanorobot would have characteristic dimensions at or below 1 micrometer, or manipulate components on the 1 to 1000 nm size range. A microrobot would have characteristic dimensions less than 1 millimeter, a millirobot would have dimensions less than a cm, a minirobot would have dimensions less than 10 cm (4 in), and a small robot would have dimensions less than 100 cm (39 in).
Due to their small size, microbots are potentially very cheap, and could be used in large numbers (swarm robotics) to explore environments which are too small or too dangerous for people or larger robots. It is expected that microbots will be useful in applications such as looking for survivors in collapsed buildings after an earthquake, or crawling through the digestive tract. What microbots lack in brawn or computational power, they can make up for by using large numbers, as in swarms of microbots.
The way microrobots move around is a function of their purpose and necessary size. At submicron sizes, the physical world demands rather bizarre ways of getting around. The Reynolds number for airborne robots is close to unity; the viscous forces dominate the inertial forces, so “flying” could use the viscosity of air, rather than Bernoulli's principle of lift. Robots moving through fluids may require rotating flagella like the motile form of E. coli. Hopping is stealthy and energy-efficient; it allows the robot to negotiate the surfaces of a variety of terrains. Pioneering calculations (Solem 1994) examined possible behaviours based on physical realities.
One of the major challenges in developing a microrobot is to achieve motion using a very limited power supply. The microrobots can use a small lightweight battery source like a coin cell or can scavenge power from the surrounding environment in the form of vibration or light energy. Microrobots are also now using biological motors as power sources, such as flagellated Serratia marcescens, to draw chemical power from the surrounding fluid to actuate the robotic device. These biorobots can be directly controlled by stimuli such as chemotaxis or galvanotaxis with several control schemes available. A popular alternative to an on-board battery is to power the robots using externally induced power. Examples include the use of electromagnetic fields, ultrasound and light to activate and control micro robots.
Size and definition
The prefix " micro " has been used a lot to subjectively designate small robots, but very variable sizes. A project to standardize names corresponding to size scales avoids confusion. So:
a nanorobot has dimensions equal to or less than 1 micrometer, or allows to manipulate components in the range of 1 to 1000 nm in size.
A micro-robot would have characteristic dimensions of less than 1 millimeter,
a millirobot would have dimensions less than one cm (it is measured in millimeters),
a minirobot would have dimensions less than 10 cm,
a small robot would have dimensions less than 100 cm.
Specific conditions for the development of microrobotics
The development of microbots involves better understanding and control of certain physical phenomena at play at these scales, because a micro-robot is subjected to forces that are of great importance at micrometric scales and that would not disturb an object of larger size;
Van der Waals force,
static electricity,
surface tension,
breath of air,
more exacerbated and brutal effects of solar heat or cold, condensation, etc.).
Microrobotics includes the study of manufacturing processes (micro-systems or even nano-systems, including micro- or nanoelectronics) required for very small scale elements.
The Biomimicry is a discipline that inspires microrobotics,
Micro-mechanics
It must allow the robot to move and interact with its environment, for example:
Of haptics that allow the robot to adhere to a robot, and possibly to grasp objects, to assemble another microrobot, or be anchored to a substrate;
of micromotors enabling mobile elements to move along one or more degrees of freedom;
micro- gyroscopes or alternative devices performing similar functions are searched;
innovative modes of travel; For example, as gerris do, microbots can already move on the water taking advantage of the surface tension of this liquid "substrate". We also try to mimic the suckers of the geckos, so as to allow a robot of several grams or tens of grams to walk on the ceiling or on any support (Program Geckohair Nanolab of Carnegy Mellon University). Students work on adhesion systems adapting to varying degrees of slope, allowing a suspended walk (on the ceiling, under a sheet...).
Biomimetic
A source of inspiration for robotics is Nature itself which tested very many mechanisms and behaviors, some interested robotics. Mimicking the functioning of neural networks and nerve centers and central generators of the spinal cord of primitive animals can already imitate certain mechanisms such as walking, swimming, running, crawling. The muscle groups are replaced by servomotors, but they are animated by reproducing the movements and the rhythm of walking, swimming, crawling or running according to the pulses distributed to computer microcircuits that mimic the nervous network.
Imitation sometimes goes even further. for example:
Nanolab works to identify and reproduce some highly adhesive colloidal molecules synthesized by animals (snails, slugs, some Coleoptera can strongly but temporarily adhere to a support thanks to such molecules). It develops an instrumentation adapted to the measurement of the performances of this type of adhesive.
the nanolab has produced a small tank-shaped robot with adhesive caterpillars that can climb onto the walls by sticking to it;
Nanolab has also developed Adhesive micro-Fibers allowing a very reinforced adhesion on a non horizontal plane, but a performance that is far from being able to reproduce is the capacity of living systems to heal, feed and reproduce, capacities who also pose new ethical questions that go beyond the usual field of bioethics.
A robot inspired by the salamander evolves easily from an aquatic to terrestrial environment; A chicken may continue to run reflexively with his head cut off, showing that the spine and spinal cord contain the essential motor centers.
Robots (salamander or snake) mimic crawling 8. On this principle, Joseph Ayers (Northeastern University in Boston) has also developed robots that mimic the movements of lamprey and lobster.
Risks and limitations
One of the risks of biomimetics is that robots too much like animals are confused with their models and hunted by real predators.
Microelectronics
The microprocessor allows the execution of computer software giving autonomy to the robot. Very low power microprocessors are needed for microbots because they have to stay light and can not carry a significant source of energy with them.
Biomechanics
Researchers have managed to animate a robot, or more precisely to react the robot to obstacles or light through cultures of rat neurons.
Micro- or nano-sensors
They must allow the robot to situate itself (or locate it) in its environment;
These are, for example, light-reacting cells, temperature sensors, pressure sensors, wave sensors, radio antennas, and so on. even a micro- camera.
Possible uses
It is hoped that they can automatically perform tasks that are dangerous, painful, repetitive or impossible for humans (in small spaces, in a vacuum), or tasks that are simpler but that perform them better than a human being would do.
Prospectivists imagine that they can be used as
industrial and technical robot (able for example to build very small parts or mechanisms, to diagnose or repair the inside of a machine without disassembling it, to inspect a piping from the inside, etc. One imagines them possibly capable of work in a vacuum or in the absence of air, etc.)
robot vacuum cleaner or household smaller and more discreet than those that currently exist
playful robot (teaching robots to program... For the moment, they exist only in the form of toys with the image of robots, but which are not themselves) or pedagogical robots type BEAM (acronym "Aesthetic and Mechanical Electronic Biology") are robots that are not very intelligent, without a microcontroller or embedded program of any kind; A spring or a simple elastic can be a source of mechanical energy for small experimental projects.
Medical robot or medical assistance. a micro-robot could perhaps one day operate in a living organism.
Spatial micro-probes or micro-robots to be sent into space to save the volume occupied and the take-away load in space exploration
Autonomy
To be autonomous, the micro-robot must have:
sufficiently efficient sensors (micro or nanosensors)
energy autonomy that requires efficient micro-batteries, low energy consumption or the ability to find and exploit an external source of energy (solar, microwave beam, hydrogen source supplying its hydrogen fuel cell, biomimetic ability to extract energy from organic matter..). One way to save energy is to ensure that the various functions of a microrobot are activated only when necessary, and optimally. The rest of the time they are put in standby, which does not possibly prevent it from moving in a passive way (carried by the wind, the current, a vehicle..)
an embedded intelligence system (individual or collective in the case of robots with complementary functions working in concert, in the manner of ants of an ant hill) and / or communication allowing interactions or remote control.
The instructional program must be sophisticated enough to respond to the occurrence of simple events and changes in the environment (stimuli) and respond to them (individually or collectively, as would be done for example by ants in an anthill) by appropriate reactions..
Microbots in literature and cinema
Various authors of science fiction and cinema use in their novels, news or films micro or even nanobots, for example in the form of micro-drones.
Source from Wikipedia
Unmanned ground vehicle
An unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) is a vehicle that operates while in contact with the ground and without an onboard human presence. UGVs can be used for many applications where it may be inconvenient, dangerous, or impossible to have a human operator present. Generally, the vehicle will have a set of sensors to observe the environment, and will either autonomously make decisions about its behavior or pass the information to a human operator at a different location who will control the vehicle through teleoperation.
The UGV is the land-based counterpart to unmanned aerial vehicles and remotely operated underwater vehicles. Unmanned robotics are being actively developed for both civilian and military use to perform a variety of dull, dirty, and dangerous activities.
History
A working remote controlled car was reported in the October 1921 issue of RCA's World Wide Wireless magazine. The car was unmanned and controlled wirelessly via radio; it was thought the technology could someday be adapted to tanks. In the 1930s, the USSR developed Teletanks, a machine gun-armed tank remotely controlled by radio from another tank. These were used in the Winter War (1939-1940 ) against Finland and at the start of the Eastern Front after Germany invaded the USSR in 1941. During World War II, the British developed a radio control version of their Matilda II infantry tank in 1941. Known as "Black Prince", it would have been used for drawing the fire of concealed anti-tank guns, or for demolition missions. Due to the costs of converting the transmission system of the tank to Wilson type gearboxes, an order for 60 tanks was cancelled.
From 1942, the Germans used the Goliath tracked mine for remote demolition work. The Goliath was a small tracked vehicle carrying 60 kg of explosive charge directed through a control cable. Their inspiration was a miniature French tracked vehicle found after France was defeated in 1940. The combination of cost, low speed, reliance on a cable for control, and poor protection against weapons meant it was not considered a success.
The first major mobile robot development effort named Shakey was created during the 1960s as a research study for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). Shakey was a wheeled platform that had a TV camera, sensors, and a computer to help guide its navigational tasks of picking up wooden blocks and placing them in certain areas based on commands. DARPA subsequently developed a series of autonomous and semi-autonomous ground robots, often in conjunction with the U.S. Army. As part of the Strategic Computing Initiative, DARPA demonstrated the Autonomous Land Vehicle, the first UGV that could navigate completely autonomously on and off roads at useful speeds.
Today
Russia and China are expeditiously becoming a commander in Unmanned Ground Vehicle development. Russia has a wide range of plenarily armed war robots. China is looking not only at circumventing American dominance in military robotics, but also consolidating the regional advantage. A series of hot territorial disputes between China and its neighbors stimulates military investments in Tokyo, Seoul and Singapore.
Design
Based on its application, unmanned ground vehicles will generally include the following components: platform, sensors, control systems, guidance interface, communication links, and systems integration features.
Platform
The platform can be based on an all-terrain vehicle design and includes the locomotive apparatus, sensors, and power source. Tracks, wheels, and legs are the common forms of locomotion. In addition, the platform may include an articulated body and some are made to join with other units.
Sensors
A primary purpose of UGV sensors is navigation, another is environment detection. Sensors can include compasses, odometers, inclinometers, gyroscopes, cameras for triangulation, laser and ultrasound range finders, and infrared technology.
Control systems
Unmanned ground vehicles are generally considered Remote-Operated and Autonomous, although Supervisory Control is also used to refer to situations where there is a combination of decision making from internal UGV systems and the remote human operator.
Remote operated
A remote-operated UGV is a vehicle that is controlled by a human operator via interface. All actions are determined by the operator based upon either direct visual observation or remote use of sensors such as digital video cameras. A basic example of the principles of remote operation would be a remote controlled toy car.
Some examples of remote-operated UGV technology are:
Unmanned Snatch Land Rover.
Frontline Robotics Teleoperated UGV (TUGV)
Gladiator Tactical Unmanned Ground Vehicle (used by the United States Marine Corps)
iRobot PackBot
Unmanned ground vehicle Miloš used by Serbian Armed Forces
Foster-Miller TALON
Remotec ANDROS F6A
Autonomous Solutions
Mesa Associates Tactical Integrated Light-Force Deployment Assembly (MATILDA)
Vecna Robotics Battlefield Extraction-Assist Robot (BEAR)
G-NIUS Autonomous Unmanned Ground Vehicles (Israel Aerospace Industries/Elbit Systems joint venture) Guardium
Robowatch ASENDRO
Ripsaw MS1
DRDO Daksh
VIPeR
DOK-ING mine clearing, firefighting, and underground mining UGV's
MacroUSA Armadillo V2 Micro UGV (MUGV) and Scorpion SUGV
Nova 5
Krymsk APC
Autonomous
An autonomous UGV is essentially an autonomous robot that operates without the need for a human controller. The vehicle uses its sensors to develop some limited understanding of the environment, which is then used by control algorithms to determine the next action to take in the context of a human provided mission goal. This fully eliminates the need for any human to watch over the menial tasks that the UGV is completing.
A fully autonomous robot may have the ability to:
Collect information about the environment, such as building maps of building interiors.
Detect objects of interest such as people and vehicles.
Travel between waypoints without human navigation assistance.
Work for extended durations without human intervention.
Avoid situations that are harmful to people, property or itself, unless those are part of its design specifications
Disarm, or remove explosives.
Repair itself without outside assistance.
A robot may also be able to learn autonomously. Autonomous learning includes the ability to:
Learn or gain new capabilities without outside assistance.
Adjust strategies based on the surroundings.
Adapt to surroundings without outside assistance.
Develop a sense of ethics regarding mission goals.
Autonomous robots still require regular maintenance, as with all machines.
One of the most crucial aspects to consider when developing armed autonomous machines is the distinction between combatants and civilians. If done incorrectly, robot deployment can be detrimental. This is particularly true in the modern era, when combatants often intentionally disguise themselves as civilians to avoid detection. Even if a robot maintained 99% accuracy, the number of civilian lives lost can still be catastrophic. Due to this, it is unlikely that any fully autonomous machines will be sent into battle armed, at least until a satisfactory solution can be developed.
Some examples of autonomous UGV technology are:
Vehicles developed for the DARPA Grand Challenge
Autonomous car
Multifunctional Utility/Logistics and Equipment vehicle
Crusher developed by CMU for DARPA
Guidance interface
Depending on the type of control system, the interface between machine and human operator can include joystick, computer programs, or voice command.
Communication links
Communication between UGV and control station can be done via radio control or fiber optics. It may also include communication with other machines and robots involved in the operation.
Systems integration
Systems architecture integrates the interplay between hardware and software and determines UGV success and autonomy.
Uses
There are a wide variety of UGVs in use today. Predominantly these vehicles are used to replace humans in hazardous situations, such as handling explosives and in bomb disabling vehicles, where additional strength or smaller size is needed, or where humans cannot easily go. Military applications include surveillance, reconnaissance, and target acquisition. They are also used in industries such as agriculture, mining and construction. UGVs are highly effective in naval operations, they have great importance in the help of Marine Corps combat; they can additionally avail in logistics operations on to the land and afloat.
UGVs are also being developed for peacekeeping operations, ground surveillance, gatekeeper/checkpoint operations, urban street presence and to enhance police and military raids in urban settings. UGVs can "draw first fire" from insurgents — reducing military and police casualties. Furthermore, UGVs are now being used in rescue and recovery mission and were first used to find survivors following 9/11 at Ground Zero.
Space Applications
NASA's Mars Exploration Rover project includes two UGVs, Spirit and Opportunity, that are still performing beyond the original design parameters. This is attributed to redundant systems, careful handling, and long-term interface decision making. Opportunity (rover) and its twin, Spirit (rover), six-wheeled, solar powered ground vehicles, were launched in July 2003 and landed on opposite sides of Mars in January 2004. The Spirit rover operated nominally until it became trapped in deep sand in April 2009, lasting more than 20 times longer than expected. Opportunity, by comparison, has been operational for more than 12 years beyond its intended lifespan of three months. Curiosity (rover) landed on Mars in September 2011, and its original two-year mission has since been extended indefinitely.
Civilian and commercial applications
Multiple civilian applications of UGVs are being implemented to automatic processes in manufacturing and production environments. They have also been developed as autonomous tour guides for the Carnegie Museum of Natural History and the Swiss National Exhibition Expo.
Agriculture
UGVs are one type of agricultural robot. Unmanned harvesting tractors can be operated around the clock making it possible to handle short windows for harvesting. UGVs are also used for spraying and thinning. They can also be used to monitor the health of crops and livestock.
Manufacturing
In the manufacturing environment, UGVs are used for transporting materials. They are often automated and referred to as AGVs. Aerospace companies use these vehicles for precision positioning and transporting heavy, bulky pieces between manufacturing stations, which are less time-consuming than using large cranes and can keep people from engaging with dangerous areas.
Mining
UGVs can be used to traverse and map mine tunnels. Combining radar, laser, and visual sensors, UGVs are in development to map 3D rock surfaces in open pit mines.
Supply chain
In the warehouse management system, UGVs have multiple uses from transferring goods with autonomous forklifts and conveyors to stock scanning and taking inventory.
Emergency response
UGVs are used in many emergency situations including Urban search and rescue, fire fighting, and nuclear response. Following the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident, UGVs were used in Japan for mapping and structural assessment in areas with too much radiation to warrant a human presence.
Military applications
UGV use by the military has saved many lives. Applications include explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) such as landmines, loading heavy items, and repairing ground conditions under enemy fire. The number of robots used in Iraq increased from 150 in 2004 to 5000 in 2005 and they disarmed over 1000 roadside bombs in Iraq at the end of 2005 (Carafano & Gudgel, 2007). By 2013, the U.S. Army had purchased 7,000 such machines and 750 had been destroyed. The military is using UGV technology to develop robots outfitted with machine guns and grenade launchers that may replace soldiers.
Examples
SARGE
SARGE is based on a 4-wheel drive all terrain vehicle; the frame of the Yamaha Breeze. Currently, the objective is to provide each infantry battalion with up to eight SARGE units (Singer, 2009b). The SARGE robot is primarily used for remote surveillance; sent ahead of the infantry to investigate potential ambushes.
Multi-Utility Tactical Transport
Built by General Dynamics Land Systems, the Mult-Utility Tactical Transport ("MUTT") comes in 4-, 6- and 8-wheeled variants. It is currently being trialled by the US military.
X-2
X-2 is medium sized tracked UGV built by Digital Concepts Engineering. It is based on a previous autonomous robotic system designed for use in EOD, search and rescue (SAR), perimeter patrol, communications relay, mine detection and clearing, and as light weapons platform. It measures 1.31 m in length, weighs 300kg and can reach speeds of 5 km/h. It will also traverse slopes up to 45' steep and cross deep mud. The vehicle is controlled using the Marionette system which is also used on Wheelbarrow EOD robots.
The Warrior
A new model of the PackBot was also produced, known as the Warrior. It is over five times the size of a PackBot, can travel at speeds of up to 15 mph, and is the first variation of a PackBot capable of carrying a weapon (Singer, 2009a). Like the Packbot, they play a key role in checking for explosives. They are capable of carrying 68 kilograms, and travelling at 8 MPH. The Warrior is priced at nearly 400,000 and more than 5000 units have already been delivered worldwide.
TerraMax
Main article: TerraMax (vehicle)
The TerraMax UVG package is designed to be integrated into any tactical wheeled vehicle, and is fully incorporated into the brakes, steering, engine and transmission. Fitted vehicles retain the ability to be driver-operated. Vehicles manufactured by Oshkosh Defense and fitted with the package have competed in the DARPA Grand Challenges of 2004 and 2005, and the DARPA Urban Challenge of 2007. The Marine Corps Warfighting Lab selected TerraMax-equipped MTVRs for the Cargo UGV project initiated in 2010, culminating in a technology concept demonstration for the Office of Naval Research in 2015. Demonstrated uses for the upgraded vehicles include unmanned route clearance (with a mine roller) and reducing personnel required for transportation convoys.
The Talon
The Talon is primarily used for bomb disposal, and was incorporated with the ability to be waterproof at 100 ft so that it can search the seas for explosives as well. The Talon was first used in 2000, and over 3,000 units have been distributed worldwide. By 2004, The Talon had been used in over 20,000 separate missions. These missions largely consisted of situations were considered to be too dangerous for humans (Carafano & Gudgel, 2007). These can include entering booby-trapped caves, searching for IEDs, or simply scouting a red combat zone. The Talon is one of the fastest Unmanned Ground Vehicles on the market, easily keeping pace with a running soldier. It can operate for 7 days off of one charge, and is even capable of climbing stairs. This robot was used at Ground Zero during the recovery mission. Like its peers, the Talon was designed to be incredibly durable. According to reports, one unit fell off of a bridge into a river and the soldiers simply turned on the control unit and drove it out of the river.
Swords Robot
Shortly after the release of the Warrior, the SWORDS robot was designed and deployed. It is a Talon robot with an attached weapon system. SWORDS is capable of mounting any weapon weighing less than 300 pounds. In a matter of seconds, the user can fit weapons such as a grenade launcher, rocket launcher, or 0.50 inch (12.7 mm) machine gun. Moreover, the SWORDS can use their weapons with extreme precision, hitting the bull’s-eye of a target 70/70 times. These robots are capable of withstanding a lot of damage, including multiple 0.50 inch bullets, or a fall from a helicopter onto concrete. In addition, the SWORDS robot is even capable of making its way through virtually any terrain, including underwater. In 2004, only four SWORDS units were in existence although 18 were requested for service overseas. It was named as one of the worlds most amazing inventions by Time Magazine in 2004. The US Army deployed three to Iraq in 2007 but then cancelled support of the project.
Small Unit Mobility Enhancement Technology (SUMET)
The SUMET system is a platform and hardware independent, low-cost electro-optical perception, localization, and autonomy package developed to convert a traditional vehicle into a UGV. It performs various autonomous logistics maneuvers in austere/harsh off-road environments, without dependence on a human operator or on GPS. The SUMET system has been deployed on several different tactical and commercial platforms and is open, modular, scalable and extensible.
Autonomous Small Scale Construction Machine (ASSCM)
The ASSCM is a civilian unmanned ground vehicle developed in Yuzuncu Yil University by scientific project granted by TUBITAK (Project code 110M396). The vehicle is a low cost small scale construction machine which can grade soft soil. The machine is capable of autonomously grading the earth within a polygon once the border of the polygon is defined. The machine determines its position by CP-DGPS and direction by consecutive position measurements. Currently the machine can autonomously grade simple polygons. The autonomous grading algorithm and control system of the machine are developed.
Taifun-M
In April 2014, the Russian Army unveiled the Taifun-M UGV as a remote sentry to guard RS-24 Yars and RT-2PM2 Topol-M missile sites. The Taifun-M features laser targeting and a cannon to carry out reconnaissance and patrol missions, detect and destroy stationary or moving targets, and provide fire support for security personnel at guarded facilities. They are currently remotely operated but future plans are to include an autonomous artificial intelligence system.
Uran-9
In 2015, Rostec unveiled the Uran-9 unmanned combat ground vehicle. According to a release by Rosoboronexport, the system will be designed to deliver combined combat, reconnaissance and counter-terrorism units with remote reconnaissance and fire support. Armament includes a 7.62 mm machine gun and four 9M120 Ataka anti-tank missiles.
Transportation
Vehicles that carry, but are not operated by a human, are not technically unmanned ground vehicles, however, the technology for development is similar.
Riderless bike
The coModule electric bicycle is fully controllable via smartphone, with users able to accelerate, turn and brake the bike by tilting their device. The bike can also drive completely autonomously in a closed environment.
Source from Wikipedia
The UGV is the land-based counterpart to unmanned aerial vehicles and remotely operated underwater vehicles. Unmanned robotics are being actively developed for both civilian and military use to perform a variety of dull, dirty, and dangerous activities.
History
A working remote controlled car was reported in the October 1921 issue of RCA's World Wide Wireless magazine. The car was unmanned and controlled wirelessly via radio; it was thought the technology could someday be adapted to tanks. In the 1930s, the USSR developed Teletanks, a machine gun-armed tank remotely controlled by radio from another tank. These were used in the Winter War (1939-1940 ) against Finland and at the start of the Eastern Front after Germany invaded the USSR in 1941. During World War II, the British developed a radio control version of their Matilda II infantry tank in 1941. Known as "Black Prince", it would have been used for drawing the fire of concealed anti-tank guns, or for demolition missions. Due to the costs of converting the transmission system of the tank to Wilson type gearboxes, an order for 60 tanks was cancelled.
From 1942, the Germans used the Goliath tracked mine for remote demolition work. The Goliath was a small tracked vehicle carrying 60 kg of explosive charge directed through a control cable. Their inspiration was a miniature French tracked vehicle found after France was defeated in 1940. The combination of cost, low speed, reliance on a cable for control, and poor protection against weapons meant it was not considered a success.
The first major mobile robot development effort named Shakey was created during the 1960s as a research study for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). Shakey was a wheeled platform that had a TV camera, sensors, and a computer to help guide its navigational tasks of picking up wooden blocks and placing them in certain areas based on commands. DARPA subsequently developed a series of autonomous and semi-autonomous ground robots, often in conjunction with the U.S. Army. As part of the Strategic Computing Initiative, DARPA demonstrated the Autonomous Land Vehicle, the first UGV that could navigate completely autonomously on and off roads at useful speeds.
Today
Russia and China are expeditiously becoming a commander in Unmanned Ground Vehicle development. Russia has a wide range of plenarily armed war robots. China is looking not only at circumventing American dominance in military robotics, but also consolidating the regional advantage. A series of hot territorial disputes between China and its neighbors stimulates military investments in Tokyo, Seoul and Singapore.
Design
Based on its application, unmanned ground vehicles will generally include the following components: platform, sensors, control systems, guidance interface, communication links, and systems integration features.
Platform
The platform can be based on an all-terrain vehicle design and includes the locomotive apparatus, sensors, and power source. Tracks, wheels, and legs are the common forms of locomotion. In addition, the platform may include an articulated body and some are made to join with other units.
Sensors
A primary purpose of UGV sensors is navigation, another is environment detection. Sensors can include compasses, odometers, inclinometers, gyroscopes, cameras for triangulation, laser and ultrasound range finders, and infrared technology.
Control systems
Unmanned ground vehicles are generally considered Remote-Operated and Autonomous, although Supervisory Control is also used to refer to situations where there is a combination of decision making from internal UGV systems and the remote human operator.
Remote operated
A remote-operated UGV is a vehicle that is controlled by a human operator via interface. All actions are determined by the operator based upon either direct visual observation or remote use of sensors such as digital video cameras. A basic example of the principles of remote operation would be a remote controlled toy car.
Some examples of remote-operated UGV technology are:
Unmanned Snatch Land Rover.
Frontline Robotics Teleoperated UGV (TUGV)
Gladiator Tactical Unmanned Ground Vehicle (used by the United States Marine Corps)
iRobot PackBot
Unmanned ground vehicle Miloš used by Serbian Armed Forces
Foster-Miller TALON
Remotec ANDROS F6A
Autonomous Solutions
Mesa Associates Tactical Integrated Light-Force Deployment Assembly (MATILDA)
Vecna Robotics Battlefield Extraction-Assist Robot (BEAR)
G-NIUS Autonomous Unmanned Ground Vehicles (Israel Aerospace Industries/Elbit Systems joint venture) Guardium
Robowatch ASENDRO
Ripsaw MS1
DRDO Daksh
VIPeR
DOK-ING mine clearing, firefighting, and underground mining UGV's
MacroUSA Armadillo V2 Micro UGV (MUGV) and Scorpion SUGV
Nova 5
Krymsk APC
Autonomous
An autonomous UGV is essentially an autonomous robot that operates without the need for a human controller. The vehicle uses its sensors to develop some limited understanding of the environment, which is then used by control algorithms to determine the next action to take in the context of a human provided mission goal. This fully eliminates the need for any human to watch over the menial tasks that the UGV is completing.
A fully autonomous robot may have the ability to:
Collect information about the environment, such as building maps of building interiors.
Detect objects of interest such as people and vehicles.
Travel between waypoints without human navigation assistance.
Work for extended durations without human intervention.
Avoid situations that are harmful to people, property or itself, unless those are part of its design specifications
Disarm, or remove explosives.
Repair itself without outside assistance.
A robot may also be able to learn autonomously. Autonomous learning includes the ability to:
Learn or gain new capabilities without outside assistance.
Adjust strategies based on the surroundings.
Adapt to surroundings without outside assistance.
Develop a sense of ethics regarding mission goals.
Autonomous robots still require regular maintenance, as with all machines.
One of the most crucial aspects to consider when developing armed autonomous machines is the distinction between combatants and civilians. If done incorrectly, robot deployment can be detrimental. This is particularly true in the modern era, when combatants often intentionally disguise themselves as civilians to avoid detection. Even if a robot maintained 99% accuracy, the number of civilian lives lost can still be catastrophic. Due to this, it is unlikely that any fully autonomous machines will be sent into battle armed, at least until a satisfactory solution can be developed.
Some examples of autonomous UGV technology are:
Vehicles developed for the DARPA Grand Challenge
Autonomous car
Multifunctional Utility/Logistics and Equipment vehicle
Crusher developed by CMU for DARPA
Guidance interface
Depending on the type of control system, the interface between machine and human operator can include joystick, computer programs, or voice command.
Communication links
Communication between UGV and control station can be done via radio control or fiber optics. It may also include communication with other machines and robots involved in the operation.
Systems integration
Systems architecture integrates the interplay between hardware and software and determines UGV success and autonomy.
Uses
There are a wide variety of UGVs in use today. Predominantly these vehicles are used to replace humans in hazardous situations, such as handling explosives and in bomb disabling vehicles, where additional strength or smaller size is needed, or where humans cannot easily go. Military applications include surveillance, reconnaissance, and target acquisition. They are also used in industries such as agriculture, mining and construction. UGVs are highly effective in naval operations, they have great importance in the help of Marine Corps combat; they can additionally avail in logistics operations on to the land and afloat.
UGVs are also being developed for peacekeeping operations, ground surveillance, gatekeeper/checkpoint operations, urban street presence and to enhance police and military raids in urban settings. UGVs can "draw first fire" from insurgents — reducing military and police casualties. Furthermore, UGVs are now being used in rescue and recovery mission and were first used to find survivors following 9/11 at Ground Zero.
Space Applications
NASA's Mars Exploration Rover project includes two UGVs, Spirit and Opportunity, that are still performing beyond the original design parameters. This is attributed to redundant systems, careful handling, and long-term interface decision making. Opportunity (rover) and its twin, Spirit (rover), six-wheeled, solar powered ground vehicles, were launched in July 2003 and landed on opposite sides of Mars in January 2004. The Spirit rover operated nominally until it became trapped in deep sand in April 2009, lasting more than 20 times longer than expected. Opportunity, by comparison, has been operational for more than 12 years beyond its intended lifespan of three months. Curiosity (rover) landed on Mars in September 2011, and its original two-year mission has since been extended indefinitely.
Civilian and commercial applications
Multiple civilian applications of UGVs are being implemented to automatic processes in manufacturing and production environments. They have also been developed as autonomous tour guides for the Carnegie Museum of Natural History and the Swiss National Exhibition Expo.
Agriculture
UGVs are one type of agricultural robot. Unmanned harvesting tractors can be operated around the clock making it possible to handle short windows for harvesting. UGVs are also used for spraying and thinning. They can also be used to monitor the health of crops and livestock.
Manufacturing
In the manufacturing environment, UGVs are used for transporting materials. They are often automated and referred to as AGVs. Aerospace companies use these vehicles for precision positioning and transporting heavy, bulky pieces between manufacturing stations, which are less time-consuming than using large cranes and can keep people from engaging with dangerous areas.
Mining
UGVs can be used to traverse and map mine tunnels. Combining radar, laser, and visual sensors, UGVs are in development to map 3D rock surfaces in open pit mines.
Supply chain
In the warehouse management system, UGVs have multiple uses from transferring goods with autonomous forklifts and conveyors to stock scanning and taking inventory.
Emergency response
UGVs are used in many emergency situations including Urban search and rescue, fire fighting, and nuclear response. Following the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident, UGVs were used in Japan for mapping and structural assessment in areas with too much radiation to warrant a human presence.
Military applications
UGV use by the military has saved many lives. Applications include explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) such as landmines, loading heavy items, and repairing ground conditions under enemy fire. The number of robots used in Iraq increased from 150 in 2004 to 5000 in 2005 and they disarmed over 1000 roadside bombs in Iraq at the end of 2005 (Carafano & Gudgel, 2007). By 2013, the U.S. Army had purchased 7,000 such machines and 750 had been destroyed. The military is using UGV technology to develop robots outfitted with machine guns and grenade launchers that may replace soldiers.
Examples
SARGE
SARGE is based on a 4-wheel drive all terrain vehicle; the frame of the Yamaha Breeze. Currently, the objective is to provide each infantry battalion with up to eight SARGE units (Singer, 2009b). The SARGE robot is primarily used for remote surveillance; sent ahead of the infantry to investigate potential ambushes.
Multi-Utility Tactical Transport
Built by General Dynamics Land Systems, the Mult-Utility Tactical Transport ("MUTT") comes in 4-, 6- and 8-wheeled variants. It is currently being trialled by the US military.
X-2
X-2 is medium sized tracked UGV built by Digital Concepts Engineering. It is based on a previous autonomous robotic system designed for use in EOD, search and rescue (SAR), perimeter patrol, communications relay, mine detection and clearing, and as light weapons platform. It measures 1.31 m in length, weighs 300kg and can reach speeds of 5 km/h. It will also traverse slopes up to 45' steep and cross deep mud. The vehicle is controlled using the Marionette system which is also used on Wheelbarrow EOD robots.
The Warrior
A new model of the PackBot was also produced, known as the Warrior. It is over five times the size of a PackBot, can travel at speeds of up to 15 mph, and is the first variation of a PackBot capable of carrying a weapon (Singer, 2009a). Like the Packbot, they play a key role in checking for explosives. They are capable of carrying 68 kilograms, and travelling at 8 MPH. The Warrior is priced at nearly 400,000 and more than 5000 units have already been delivered worldwide.
TerraMax
Main article: TerraMax (vehicle)
The TerraMax UVG package is designed to be integrated into any tactical wheeled vehicle, and is fully incorporated into the brakes, steering, engine and transmission. Fitted vehicles retain the ability to be driver-operated. Vehicles manufactured by Oshkosh Defense and fitted with the package have competed in the DARPA Grand Challenges of 2004 and 2005, and the DARPA Urban Challenge of 2007. The Marine Corps Warfighting Lab selected TerraMax-equipped MTVRs for the Cargo UGV project initiated in 2010, culminating in a technology concept demonstration for the Office of Naval Research in 2015. Demonstrated uses for the upgraded vehicles include unmanned route clearance (with a mine roller) and reducing personnel required for transportation convoys.
The Talon
The Talon is primarily used for bomb disposal, and was incorporated with the ability to be waterproof at 100 ft so that it can search the seas for explosives as well. The Talon was first used in 2000, and over 3,000 units have been distributed worldwide. By 2004, The Talon had been used in over 20,000 separate missions. These missions largely consisted of situations were considered to be too dangerous for humans (Carafano & Gudgel, 2007). These can include entering booby-trapped caves, searching for IEDs, or simply scouting a red combat zone. The Talon is one of the fastest Unmanned Ground Vehicles on the market, easily keeping pace with a running soldier. It can operate for 7 days off of one charge, and is even capable of climbing stairs. This robot was used at Ground Zero during the recovery mission. Like its peers, the Talon was designed to be incredibly durable. According to reports, one unit fell off of a bridge into a river and the soldiers simply turned on the control unit and drove it out of the river.
Swords Robot
Shortly after the release of the Warrior, the SWORDS robot was designed and deployed. It is a Talon robot with an attached weapon system. SWORDS is capable of mounting any weapon weighing less than 300 pounds. In a matter of seconds, the user can fit weapons such as a grenade launcher, rocket launcher, or 0.50 inch (12.7 mm) machine gun. Moreover, the SWORDS can use their weapons with extreme precision, hitting the bull’s-eye of a target 70/70 times. These robots are capable of withstanding a lot of damage, including multiple 0.50 inch bullets, or a fall from a helicopter onto concrete. In addition, the SWORDS robot is even capable of making its way through virtually any terrain, including underwater. In 2004, only four SWORDS units were in existence although 18 were requested for service overseas. It was named as one of the worlds most amazing inventions by Time Magazine in 2004. The US Army deployed three to Iraq in 2007 but then cancelled support of the project.
Small Unit Mobility Enhancement Technology (SUMET)
The SUMET system is a platform and hardware independent, low-cost electro-optical perception, localization, and autonomy package developed to convert a traditional vehicle into a UGV. It performs various autonomous logistics maneuvers in austere/harsh off-road environments, without dependence on a human operator or on GPS. The SUMET system has been deployed on several different tactical and commercial platforms and is open, modular, scalable and extensible.
Autonomous Small Scale Construction Machine (ASSCM)
The ASSCM is a civilian unmanned ground vehicle developed in Yuzuncu Yil University by scientific project granted by TUBITAK (Project code 110M396). The vehicle is a low cost small scale construction machine which can grade soft soil. The machine is capable of autonomously grading the earth within a polygon once the border of the polygon is defined. The machine determines its position by CP-DGPS and direction by consecutive position measurements. Currently the machine can autonomously grade simple polygons. The autonomous grading algorithm and control system of the machine are developed.
Taifun-M
In April 2014, the Russian Army unveiled the Taifun-M UGV as a remote sentry to guard RS-24 Yars and RT-2PM2 Topol-M missile sites. The Taifun-M features laser targeting and a cannon to carry out reconnaissance and patrol missions, detect and destroy stationary or moving targets, and provide fire support for security personnel at guarded facilities. They are currently remotely operated but future plans are to include an autonomous artificial intelligence system.
Uran-9
In 2015, Rostec unveiled the Uran-9 unmanned combat ground vehicle. According to a release by Rosoboronexport, the system will be designed to deliver combined combat, reconnaissance and counter-terrorism units with remote reconnaissance and fire support. Armament includes a 7.62 mm machine gun and four 9M120 Ataka anti-tank missiles.
Transportation
Vehicles that carry, but are not operated by a human, are not technically unmanned ground vehicles, however, the technology for development is similar.
Riderless bike
The coModule electric bicycle is fully controllable via smartphone, with users able to accelerate, turn and brake the bike by tilting their device. The bike can also drive completely autonomously in a closed environment.
Source from Wikipedia
Unmanned aerial vehicle
An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft without a human pilot aboard. UAVs are a component of an unmanned aircraft system (UAS); which include a UAV, a ground-based controller, and a system of communications between the two. The flight of UAVs may operate with various degrees of autonomy: either under remote control by a human operator or autonomously by onboard computers.
Compared to manned aircraft, UAVs were originally used for missions too "dull, dirty or dangerous" for humans. While they originated mostly in military applications, their use is rapidly expanding to commercial, scientific, recreational, agricultural, and other applications, such as policing, peacekeeping, and surveillance, product deliveries, aerial photography, agriculture, smuggling, and drone racing. Civilian UAVs now vastly outnumber military UAVs, with estimates of over a million sold by 2015, so they can be seen as an early commercial application of autonomous things, to be followed by the autonomous car and home robots.
Classification
UAVs typically fall into one of six functional categories (although multi-role airframe platforms are becoming more prevalent):
Target and decoy – providing ground and aerial gunnery a target that simulates an enemy aircraft or missile
Reconnaissance – providing battlefield intelligence
Combat – providing attack capability for high-risk missions (see: Unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV))
Logistics – delivering cargo
Research and development – improve UAV technologies
Civil and commercial UAVs – agriculture, aerial photography, data collection
The U.S. Military UAV tier system is used by military planners to designate the various individual aircraft elements in an overall usage plan.
Schiebel S-100 fitted with a Lightweight Multirole Missile
Vehicles can be categorised in terms of range/altitude. The following has been advanced[by whom?] as relevant at industry events such as ParcAberporth Unmanned Systems forum:
Hand-held 2,000 ft (600 m) altitude, about 2 km range
Close 5,000 ft (1,500 m) altitude, up to 10 km range
NATO type 10,000 ft (3,000 m) altitude, up to 50 km range
Tactical 18,000 ft (5,500 m) altitude, about 160 km range
MALE (medium altitude, long endurance) up to 30,000 ft (9,000 m) and range over 200 km
HALE (high altitude, long endurance) over 30,000 ft (9,100 m) and indefinite range
Hypersonic high-speed, supersonic (Mach 1–5) or hypersonic (Mach 5+) 50,000 ft (15,200 m) or suborbital altitude, range over 200 km
Orbital low earth orbit (Mach 25+)
CIS Lunar Earth-Moon transfer
Computer Assisted Carrier Guidance System (CACGS) for UAVs
Other categories include:
Hobbyist UAVs – which can be further divided into
Ready-to-fly (RTF)/Commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS)
Bind-and-fly (BNF) – require minimum knowledge to fly the platform
Almost-ready-to-fly (ARF)/Do-it-yourself (DIY) – require significant knowledge to get in the air
Bare frame - requires significant knowledge and your own parts to get it in the air
Midsize military and commercial UAVs
Large military-specific UAVs
Stealth combat UAVs
Unmanned Versatile Aircraft (originally a 2-seater Pipistrel Sinus)
Manned aircraft transformed into unmanned (and Optionally Piloted UAVs or OpVs)
Classifications according to aircraft weight are quite simpler:
Micro air vehicle (MAV) – the smallest UAVs that can weigh less than 1g
Miniature UAV (also called SUAS) – approximately less than 25 kg
Heavier UAVs
UAV components
Manned and unmanned aircraft of the same type generally have recognizably similar physical components. The main exceptions are the cockpit and environmental control system or life support systems. Some UAVs carry payloads (such as a camera) that weigh considerably less than an adult human, and as a result can be considerably smaller. Though they carry heavy payloads, weaponized military UAVs are lighter than their manned counterparts with comparable armaments.
Small civilian UAVs have no life-critical systems, and can thus be built out of lighter but less sturdy materials and shapes, and can use less robustly tested electronic control systems. For small UAVs, the quadcopter design has become popular, though this layout is rarely used for manned aircraft. Miniaturization means that less-powerful propulsion technologies can be used that are not feasible for manned aircraft, such as small electric motors and batteries.
Control systems for UAVs are often different than manned craft. For remote human control, a camera and video link almost always replace the cockpit windows; radio-transmitted digital commands replace physical cockpit controls. Autopilot software is used on both manned and unmanned aircraft, with varying feature sets.
Body
The primary difference for planes is the absence of the cockpit area and its windows. Tailless quadcopters are a common form factor for rotary wing UAVs while tailed mono- and bi-copters are common for manned platforms.
Power supply and platform
Small UAVs mostly use lithium-polymer batteries (Li-Po), while larger vehicles rely on conventional airplane engines. Scale or size of aircraft is not the defining or limiting characteristic of energy supply for a UAV. At present,[when?] the energy density of Li-Po is far less than gasoline. The record of travel for a UAV (built from balsa wood and mylar skin) across the North Atlantic Ocean is held by a gasoline model airplane or UAV. Manard Hill in "in 2003 when one of his creations flew 1,882 miles across the Atlantic Ocean on less than a gallon of fuel" holds this record. See: Electric power is used as less work is required for a flight and electric motors are quieter. Also, properly designed, the thrust to weight ratio for an electric or gasoline motor driving a propeller can hover or climb vertically. Botmite airplane is an example of an electric UAV which can climb vertically.
Battery elimination circuitry (BEC) is used to centralize power distribution and often harbors a microcontroller unit (MCU). Costlier switching BECs diminish heating on the platform.
Computing
UAV computing capability followed the advances of computing technology, beginning with analog controls and evolving into microcontrollers, then system-on-a-chip (SOC) and single-board computers (SBC).
System hardware for small UAVs is often called the flight controller (FC), flight controller board (FCB) or autopilot.
Sensors
Position and movement sensors give information about the aircraft state. Exteroceptive sensors deal with external information like distance measurements, while exproprioceptive ones correlate internal and external states.
Non-cooperative sensors are able to detect targets autonomously so they are used for separation assurance and collision avoidance.
Degrees of freedom (DOF) refers to both the amount and quality of sensors on-board: 6 DOF implies 3-axis gyroscopes and accelerometers (a typical inertial measurement unit – IMU), 9 DOF refers to an IMU plus a compass, 10 DOF adds a barometer and 11 DOF usually adds a GPS receiver.
Actuators
UAV actuators include digital electronic speed controllers (which control the RPM of the motors) linked to motors/engines and propellers, servomotors (for planes and helicopters mostly), weapons, payload actuators, LEDs and speakers.
Software
UAV software called the flight stack or autopilot. UAVs are real-time systems that require rapid response to changing sensor data. Examples include Raspberry Pis, Beagleboards, etc. shielded with NavIO, PXFMini, etc. or designed from scratch such as Nuttx, preemptive-RT Linux, Xenomai, Orocos-Robot Operating System or DDS-ROS 2.0.
Flight stack overview
Civil-use open-source stacks include:
ArduCopter
DroneCode (forked from ArduCopter)
CrazyFlie
KKMultiCopter
MultiWii
BaseFlight (forked from MultiWii)
CleanFlight (forked from BaseFlight)
BetaFlight (forked from CleanFlight)
iNav (forked from CleanFlight)
RaceFlight (forked from CleanFlight)
OpenPilot
dRonin (forked from OpenPilot)
LibrePilot (forked from OpenPilot)
TauLabs (forked from OpenPilot)
Paparazzi
Loop principles
UAVs employ open-loop, closed-loop or hybrid control architectures.
Open loop—This type provides a positive control signal (faster, slower, left, right, up, down) without incorporating feedback from sensor data.
Closed loop – This type incorporates sensor feedback to adjust behavior (reduce speed to reflect tailwind, move to altitude 300 feet). The PID controller is common. Sometimes, feedforward is employed, transferring the need to close the loop further.
Flight controls
UAVs can be programmed to perform aggressive manœuvres or landing/perching on inclined surfaces, and then to climb toward better communication spots. Some UAVs can control flight with varying flight modelisation, such as VTOL designs.
UAVs can also implement perching on a flat vertical surface.
Communications
Most UAVs use a Radio for remote control and exchange of video and other data. Early UAVs had only Narrowband uplink. Downlinks came later. These bi-directional narrowband radio links carried Command and Control (C&C) and Telemetry data about the status of aircraft systems to the remote operator. For very long range flights, military UAVs also use satellite receivers as part of satellite navigation systems. In cases when video transmission was required, the UAVs will implement a separate analog video radio link.
In the most modern UAV applications, video transmission is required. So instead of having 2 separate links for C&C, Telemetry and Video traffic, a Broadband link is used to carry all types of data on the a single radio link. These broadband links can leverage Quality of service techniques to optimize the C&C traffic for low latency. Usually these broadband links carry TCP/IP traffic that can be routed over the Internet.
The radio signal from the operator side can be issued from either:
Ground control – a human operating a radio transmitter/receiver, a smartphone, a tablet, a computer, or the original meaning of a military ground control station (GCS). Recently control from wearable devices, human movement recognition, human brain waves was also demonstrated.
Remote network system, such as satellite duplex data links for some military powers. Downstream digital video over mobile networks has also entered consumer markets, while direct UAV control uplink over the celullar mesh and LTE have been demonstrated and are in trials.
Another aircraft, serving as a relay or mobile control station – military manned-unmanned teaming (MUM-T).
A protocol MAVLink is increasingly becoming popular to carry Command and Control data between the Ground control and the vehicle
Autonomy
ICAO classifies unmanned aircraft as either remotely piloted aircraft or fully autonomous. Actual UAVs may offer intermediate degrees of autonomy. E.g., a vehicle that is remotely piloted in most contexts may have an autonomous return-to-base operation.
Basic autonomy comes from proprioceptive sensors. Advanced autonomy calls for situational awareness, knowledge about the environment surrounding the aircraft from exterioceptive sensors: sensor fusion integrates information from multiple sensors.
Basic principles
One way to achieve autonomous control employs multiple control-loop layers, as in hierarchical control systems. As of 2016 the low-layer loops (i.e. for flight control) tick as fast as 32,000 times per second, while higher-level loops may cycle once per second. The principle is to decompose the aircraft's behavior into manageable "chunks", or states, with known transitions. Hierarchical control system types range from simple scripts to finite state machines, behavior trees and hierarchical task planners. The most common control mechanism used in these layers is the PID controller which can be used to achieve hover for a quadcopter by using data from the IMU to calculate precise inputs for the electronic speed controllers and motors.
Examples of mid-layer algorithms:
Path planning: determining an optimal path for vehicle to follow while meeting mission objectives and constraints, such as obstacles or fuel requirements
Trajectory generation (motion planning): determining control maneuvers to take in order to follow a given path or to go from one location to another
Trajectory regulation: constraining a vehicle within some tolerance to a trajectory
Evolved UAV hierarchical task planners use methods like state tree searches or genetic algorithms.
Autonomy features
UAV manufacturers often build in specific autonomous operations, such as:
Self-level: attitude stabilization on the pitch and roll axes.
Altitude hold: The aircraft maintains its altitude using barometric or ground sensors.
Hover/position hold: Keep level pitch and roll, stable yaw heading and altitude while maintaining position using GNSS or inertal sensors.
Headless mode: Pitch control relative to the position of the pilot rather than relative to the vehicle's axes.
Care-free: automatic roll and yaw control while moving horizontally
Take-off and landing (using a variety of aircraft or ground-based sensors and systems; see also:Autoland)
Failsafe: automatic landing or return-to-home upon loss of control signal
Return-to-home: Fly back to the point of takeoff (often gaining altitude first to avoid possible intervening obstructions such as trees or buildings).
Follow-me: Maintain relative position to a moving pilot or other object using GNSS, image recognition or homing beacon.
GPS waypoint navigation: Using GNSS to navigate to an intermediate location on a travel path.
Orbit around an object: Similar to Follow-me but continuously circle a target.
Pre-programmed aerobatics (such as rolls and loops)
Functions
Full autonomy is available for specific tasks, such as airborne refueling or ground-based battery switching; but higher-level tasks call for greater computing, sensing and actuating capabilities. One approach to quantifying autonomous capabilities is based on OODA terminology, as suggested by a 2002 US Air Force Research Laboratory, and used in the table below:
Medium levels of autonomy, such as reactive autonomy and high levels using cognitive autonomy, have already been achieved to some extent and are very active research fields.
Reactive autonomy
Reactive autonomy, such as collective flight, real-time collision avoidance, wall following and corridor centring, relies on telecommunication and situational awareness provided by range sensors: optic flow, lidars (light radars), radars, sonars.
Most range sensors analyze electromagnetic radiation, reflected off the environment and coming to the sensor. The cameras (for visual flow) act as simple receivers. Lidars, radars and sonars (with sound mechanical waves) emit and receive waves, measuring the round-trip transit time. UAV cameras do not require emitting power, reducing total consumption.
Radars and sonars are mostly used for military applications.
Reactive autonomy has in some forms already reached consumer markets: it may be widely available in less than a decade.
Simultaneous localization and mapping
SLAM combines odometry and external data to represent the world and the position of the UAV in it in three dimensions. High-altitude outdoor navigation does not require large vertical fields-of-view and can rely on GPS coordinates (which makes it simple mapping rather than SLAM).
Two related research fields are photogrammetry and LIDAR, especially in low-altitude and indoor 3D environments.
Indoor photogrammetric and stereophotogrammetric SLAM has been demonstrated with quadcopters.
Lidar platforms with heavy, costly and gimbaled traditional laser platforms are proven. Research attempts to address production cost, 2D to 3D expansion, power-to-range ratio, weight and dimensions. LED range-finding applications are commercialized for low-distance sensing capabilities. Research investigates hybridization between light emission and computing power: phased array spatial light modulators, and frequency-modulated-continuous-wave (FMCW) MEMS-tunable vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs).
Swarming
Robot swarming refers to networks of agents able to dynamically reconfigure as elements leave or enter the network. They provide greater flexibility than multi-agent cooperation. Swarming may open the path to data fusion. Some bio-inspired flight swarms use steering behaviors and flocking.[clarification needed]
Future military potential
In the military sector, American Predators and Reapers are made for counterterrorism operations and in war zones in which the enemy lacks sufficient firepower to shoot them down. They are not designed to withstand antiaircraft defenses or air-to-air combat. In September 2013, the chief of the US Air Combat Command stated that current UAVs were "useless in a contested environment" unless manned aircraft were there to protect them. A 2012 Congressional Research Service (CRS) report speculated that in the future, UAVs may be able to perform tasks beyond intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and strikes; the CRS report listed air-to-air combat ("a more difficult future task") as possible future undertakings. The Department of Defense's Unmanned Systems Integrated Roadmap FY2013-2038 foresees a more important place for UAVs in combat. Issues include extended capabilities, human-UAV interaction, managing increased information flux, increased autonomy and developing UAV-specific munitions. DARPA's project of systems of systems, or General Atomics work may augur future warfare scenarios, the latter disclosing Avenger swarms equipped with High Energy Liquid Laser Area Defense System (HELLADS).
Cognitive radio
Cognitive radio[clarification needed] technology may have UAV applications.
Learning capabilities
UAVs may exploit distributed neural networks.
Market
Military
The global military UAV market is dominated by companies based in the United States and Israel. By sale numbers, The US held over 60% military-market share in 2017. Four of top five military UAV manufactures are American including General Atomics, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and Boeing, followed by the Chinese company CASC. Israel companies mainly focus on small surveillance UAV system and by quantity of drones, Israel exported 60.7% (2014) of UAV on the market while the United States export 23.9% (2014); top importers of military UAV are The United Kingdom (33.9%) and India (13.2%). United States alone operated over 9,000 military UAVs in 2014. General Atomics is the dominant manufacturer with the Global Hawk and Predator/Mariner systems product-line.
Civilian
The civilian drone market is dominated by Chinese companies. Chinese drone manufacturer DJI alone has 75% of civilian-market share in 2017 with $11 billion forecast global sales in 2020. Followed by French company Parrot with $110m and US company 3DRobotics with $21.6m in 2014. As of March 2018, more than one million UAVs (878,000 hobbyist and 122,000 commercial) were registered with the U.S. FAA. 2018 NPD point to consumers increasingly purchasing drones with more advanced features with 33 percent growth in both the $500+ and $1000+ market segments.
Civilian UAV market is relatively new compared to military. Companies are emerging in both developed and developing nations at the same time. Many early stage startups have received support and funding from investors like in United States and by government agencies as the case in India. Some universities offer research and training programs or degrees. Private entities also provide online and in-person training programs for both recreational and commercial UAV use.
Consumer drones are also widely used by military organizations worldwide because of the cost-effective nature of consumer product. In 2018, Israeli military started to use DJI Mavic and Matrice series of UAV for light reconnaissance mission since the civilian drones are easier to use and have higher reliability. DJI drones is also the most widely used commercial unmanned aerial system that the US Army has employed.
Lighted drones are beginning to be used in nighttime displays for artistic and advertising purposes.
Transport
The AIA reports large cargo and passengers drones should be certified and introduced over the next 20 years. Sensor-carrying large drones are expected from 2018; short-haul, low altitude freighters outside cities from 2025; long-haul cargo flights by the mid-2030s and then passenger flights by 2040. Spending should rise from a few hundred million dollars on research and development in 2018 to $4 billion by 2028 and $30 billion by 2036.
Development considerations
Animal imitation – ethology
Flapping-wing ornithopters, imitating birds or insects, are a research field in microUAVs. Their inherent stealth recommends them for spy missions.
The Nano Hummingbird is commercially available, while sub-1g microUAVs inspired by flies, albeit using a power tether, can "land" on vertical surfaces.
Other projects include unmanned "beetles" and other insects.
Research is exploring miniature optic-flow sensors, called ocellis, mimicking the compound insect eyes formed from multiple facets, which can transmit data to neuromorphic chips able to treat optic flow as well as light intensity discrepancies.
Endurance
UAV endurance is not constrained by the physiological capabilities of a human pilot.
Because of their small size, low weight, low vibration and high power to weight ratio, Wankel rotary engines are used in many large UAVs. Their engine rotors cannot seize; the engine is not susceptible to shock-cooling during descent and it does not require an enriched fuel mixture for cooling at high power. These attributes reduce fuel usage, increasing range or payload.
Proper drone cooling is essential for long-term drone endurance. Overheating and subsequent engine failure is the most common cause of drone failure.
Hydrogen fuel cells, using hydrogen power, may be able to extend the endurance of small UAVs, up to several hours.
Micro air vehicles endurance is so far best achieved with flapping-wing UAVs, followed by planes and multirotors standing last, due to lower Reynolds number.
Solar-electric UAVs, a concept originally championed by the AstroFlight Sunrise in 1974, have achieved flight times of several weeks.
Solar-powered atmospheric satellites ("atmosats") designed for operating at altitudes exceeding 20 km (12 miles, or 60,000 feet) for as long as five years could potentially perform duties more economically and with more versatility than low earth orbit satellites. Likely applications include weather monitoring, disaster recovery, earth imaging and communications.
Electric UAVs powered by microwave power transmission or laser power beaming are other potential endurance solutions.
Another application for a high endurance UAV would be to "stare" at a battlefield for a long interval (ARGUS-IS, Gorgon Stare, Integrated Sensor Is Structure) to record events that could then be played backwards to track battlefield activities.
Lengthy endurance flights
Reliability
Reliability improvements target all aspects of UAV systems, using resilience engineering and fault tolerance techniques.
Individual reliability covers robustness of flight controllers, to ensure safety without excessive redundancy to minimize cost and weight. Besides, dynamic assessment of flight envelope allows damage-resilient UAVs, using non-linear analysis with ad-hoc designed loops or neural networks. UAV software liability is bending toward the design and certifications of manned avionics software.
Swarm resilience involves maintaining operational capabilities and reconfiguring tasks given unit failures.
Applications
There are numerous civilian, commercial, military, and aerospace applications for UAVs. These include:
Civil
Disaster relief, archeology, conservation (pollution monitoring and anti-poaching), law enforcement, crime, and terrorism
Commercial
Aerial surveillance, filmmaking, journalism, scientific research, surveying, cargo transport, and agriculture
Military
Reconnaissance, attack, demining, and target practice
Existing UAVs
UAVs are being developed and deployed by many countries around the world. Due to their wide proliferation, no comprehensive list of UAV systems exists.
The export of UAVs or technology capable of carrying a 500 kg payload at least 300 km is restricted in many countries by the Missile Technology Control Regime.
Safety and security
Air traffic
UAVs can threaten airspace security in numerous ways, including unintentional collisions or other interference with other aircraft, deliberate attacks or by distracting pilots or flight controllers. The first incident of a drone-airplane collision occurred in mid-October 2017 in Quebec City, Canada. The first recorded instance of a drone collision with a hot air balloon occurred on 10 August 2018 in Driggs, Idaho, United States; although there was no significant damage to the balloon nor any injuries to its 3 occupants, the balloon pilot reported the incident to the NTSB, stating that "I hope this incident helps create a conversation of respect for nature, the airspace, and rules and regulations.”
Malicious use
UAVs could be loaded with dangerous payloads, and crashed into vulnerable targets. Payloads could include explosives, chemical, radiologial or biological hazards. UAVs with generally non-lethal payloads could possibly be hacked and put to malicious purposes. Anti-UAV systems are being developed by states to counter this threat. This is, however, proving difficult. As Dr J. Rogers stated in an interview to A&T "There is a big debate out there at the moment about what the best way is to counter these small UAVs, whether they are used by hobbyists causing a bit of a nuisance or in a more sinister manner by a terrorist actor.”
By 2017, drones were being used to drop contraband into prisons.
Security vulnerabilities
The interest in UAVs cyber security has been raised greatly after the Predator UAV video stream hijacking incident in 2009, where Islamic militants used cheap, off-the-shelf equipment to stream video feeds from a UAV. Another risk is the possibility of hijacking or jamming a UAV in flight. Several security researchers have made public some vulnerabilities in commercial UAVs, in some cases even providing full source code or tools to reproduce their attacks. At a workshop on UAVs and privacy in October 2016, researchers from the Federal Trade Commission showed they were able to hack into three different consumer quadcopters and noted that UAV manufacturers can make their UAVs more secure by the basic security measures of encrypting the Wi-Fi signal and adding password protection.
Wildfires
In the United States, flying close to a wildfire is punishable by a maximum $25,000 fine. Nonetheless, in 2014 and 2015, firefighting air support in California was hindered on several occasions, including at the Lake Fire and the North Fire. In response, California legislators introduced a bill that would allow firefighters to disable UAVs which invaded restricted airspace. The FAA later required registration of most UAVs.
The use of UAVs is also being investigated to help detect and fight wildfires, whether through observation or launching pyrotechnic devices to start backfires.
Source from Wikipedia
Compared to manned aircraft, UAVs were originally used for missions too "dull, dirty or dangerous" for humans. While they originated mostly in military applications, their use is rapidly expanding to commercial, scientific, recreational, agricultural, and other applications, such as policing, peacekeeping, and surveillance, product deliveries, aerial photography, agriculture, smuggling, and drone racing. Civilian UAVs now vastly outnumber military UAVs, with estimates of over a million sold by 2015, so they can be seen as an early commercial application of autonomous things, to be followed by the autonomous car and home robots.
Classification
UAVs typically fall into one of six functional categories (although multi-role airframe platforms are becoming more prevalent):
Target and decoy – providing ground and aerial gunnery a target that simulates an enemy aircraft or missile
Reconnaissance – providing battlefield intelligence
Combat – providing attack capability for high-risk missions (see: Unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV))
Logistics – delivering cargo
Research and development – improve UAV technologies
Civil and commercial UAVs – agriculture, aerial photography, data collection
The U.S. Military UAV tier system is used by military planners to designate the various individual aircraft elements in an overall usage plan.
Schiebel S-100 fitted with a Lightweight Multirole Missile
Vehicles can be categorised in terms of range/altitude. The following has been advanced[by whom?] as relevant at industry events such as ParcAberporth Unmanned Systems forum:
Hand-held 2,000 ft (600 m) altitude, about 2 km range
Close 5,000 ft (1,500 m) altitude, up to 10 km range
NATO type 10,000 ft (3,000 m) altitude, up to 50 km range
Tactical 18,000 ft (5,500 m) altitude, about 160 km range
MALE (medium altitude, long endurance) up to 30,000 ft (9,000 m) and range over 200 km
HALE (high altitude, long endurance) over 30,000 ft (9,100 m) and indefinite range
Hypersonic high-speed, supersonic (Mach 1–5) or hypersonic (Mach 5+) 50,000 ft (15,200 m) or suborbital altitude, range over 200 km
Orbital low earth orbit (Mach 25+)
CIS Lunar Earth-Moon transfer
Computer Assisted Carrier Guidance System (CACGS) for UAVs
Other categories include:
Hobbyist UAVs – which can be further divided into
Ready-to-fly (RTF)/Commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS)
Bind-and-fly (BNF) – require minimum knowledge to fly the platform
Almost-ready-to-fly (ARF)/Do-it-yourself (DIY) – require significant knowledge to get in the air
Bare frame - requires significant knowledge and your own parts to get it in the air
Midsize military and commercial UAVs
Large military-specific UAVs
Stealth combat UAVs
Unmanned Versatile Aircraft (originally a 2-seater Pipistrel Sinus)
Manned aircraft transformed into unmanned (and Optionally Piloted UAVs or OpVs)
Classifications according to aircraft weight are quite simpler:
Micro air vehicle (MAV) – the smallest UAVs that can weigh less than 1g
Miniature UAV (also called SUAS) – approximately less than 25 kg
Heavier UAVs
UAV components
Manned and unmanned aircraft of the same type generally have recognizably similar physical components. The main exceptions are the cockpit and environmental control system or life support systems. Some UAVs carry payloads (such as a camera) that weigh considerably less than an adult human, and as a result can be considerably smaller. Though they carry heavy payloads, weaponized military UAVs are lighter than their manned counterparts with comparable armaments.
Small civilian UAVs have no life-critical systems, and can thus be built out of lighter but less sturdy materials and shapes, and can use less robustly tested electronic control systems. For small UAVs, the quadcopter design has become popular, though this layout is rarely used for manned aircraft. Miniaturization means that less-powerful propulsion technologies can be used that are not feasible for manned aircraft, such as small electric motors and batteries.
Control systems for UAVs are often different than manned craft. For remote human control, a camera and video link almost always replace the cockpit windows; radio-transmitted digital commands replace physical cockpit controls. Autopilot software is used on both manned and unmanned aircraft, with varying feature sets.
Body
The primary difference for planes is the absence of the cockpit area and its windows. Tailless quadcopters are a common form factor for rotary wing UAVs while tailed mono- and bi-copters are common for manned platforms.
Power supply and platform
Small UAVs mostly use lithium-polymer batteries (Li-Po), while larger vehicles rely on conventional airplane engines. Scale or size of aircraft is not the defining or limiting characteristic of energy supply for a UAV. At present,[when?] the energy density of Li-Po is far less than gasoline. The record of travel for a UAV (built from balsa wood and mylar skin) across the North Atlantic Ocean is held by a gasoline model airplane or UAV. Manard Hill in "in 2003 when one of his creations flew 1,882 miles across the Atlantic Ocean on less than a gallon of fuel" holds this record. See: Electric power is used as less work is required for a flight and electric motors are quieter. Also, properly designed, the thrust to weight ratio for an electric or gasoline motor driving a propeller can hover or climb vertically. Botmite airplane is an example of an electric UAV which can climb vertically.
Battery elimination circuitry (BEC) is used to centralize power distribution and often harbors a microcontroller unit (MCU). Costlier switching BECs diminish heating on the platform.
Computing
UAV computing capability followed the advances of computing technology, beginning with analog controls and evolving into microcontrollers, then system-on-a-chip (SOC) and single-board computers (SBC).
System hardware for small UAVs is often called the flight controller (FC), flight controller board (FCB) or autopilot.
Sensors
Position and movement sensors give information about the aircraft state. Exteroceptive sensors deal with external information like distance measurements, while exproprioceptive ones correlate internal and external states.
Non-cooperative sensors are able to detect targets autonomously so they are used for separation assurance and collision avoidance.
Degrees of freedom (DOF) refers to both the amount and quality of sensors on-board: 6 DOF implies 3-axis gyroscopes and accelerometers (a typical inertial measurement unit – IMU), 9 DOF refers to an IMU plus a compass, 10 DOF adds a barometer and 11 DOF usually adds a GPS receiver.
Actuators
UAV actuators include digital electronic speed controllers (which control the RPM of the motors) linked to motors/engines and propellers, servomotors (for planes and helicopters mostly), weapons, payload actuators, LEDs and speakers.
Software
UAV software called the flight stack or autopilot. UAVs are real-time systems that require rapid response to changing sensor data. Examples include Raspberry Pis, Beagleboards, etc. shielded with NavIO, PXFMini, etc. or designed from scratch such as Nuttx, preemptive-RT Linux, Xenomai, Orocos-Robot Operating System or DDS-ROS 2.0.
Flight stack overview
| Layer | Requirement | Operations | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Firmware | Time-critical | From machine code to processor execution, memory access | ArduCopter-v1.px4 |
| Middleware | Time-critical | Flight control, navigation, radio management | Cleanflight, ArduPilot |
| Operating system | Computer-intensive | Optic flow, obstacle avoidance, SLAM, decision-making | ROS, Nuttx, Linux distributions, Microsoft IOT |
Civil-use open-source stacks include:
ArduCopter
DroneCode (forked from ArduCopter)
CrazyFlie
KKMultiCopter
MultiWii
BaseFlight (forked from MultiWii)
CleanFlight (forked from BaseFlight)
BetaFlight (forked from CleanFlight)
iNav (forked from CleanFlight)
RaceFlight (forked from CleanFlight)
OpenPilot
dRonin (forked from OpenPilot)
LibrePilot (forked from OpenPilot)
TauLabs (forked from OpenPilot)
Paparazzi
Loop principles
UAVs employ open-loop, closed-loop or hybrid control architectures.
Open loop—This type provides a positive control signal (faster, slower, left, right, up, down) without incorporating feedback from sensor data.
Closed loop – This type incorporates sensor feedback to adjust behavior (reduce speed to reflect tailwind, move to altitude 300 feet). The PID controller is common. Sometimes, feedforward is employed, transferring the need to close the loop further.
Flight controls
UAVs can be programmed to perform aggressive manœuvres or landing/perching on inclined surfaces, and then to climb toward better communication spots. Some UAVs can control flight with varying flight modelisation, such as VTOL designs.
UAVs can also implement perching on a flat vertical surface.
Communications
Most UAVs use a Radio for remote control and exchange of video and other data. Early UAVs had only Narrowband uplink. Downlinks came later. These bi-directional narrowband radio links carried Command and Control (C&C) and Telemetry data about the status of aircraft systems to the remote operator. For very long range flights, military UAVs also use satellite receivers as part of satellite navigation systems. In cases when video transmission was required, the UAVs will implement a separate analog video radio link.
In the most modern UAV applications, video transmission is required. So instead of having 2 separate links for C&C, Telemetry and Video traffic, a Broadband link is used to carry all types of data on the a single radio link. These broadband links can leverage Quality of service techniques to optimize the C&C traffic for low latency. Usually these broadband links carry TCP/IP traffic that can be routed over the Internet.
The radio signal from the operator side can be issued from either:
Ground control – a human operating a radio transmitter/receiver, a smartphone, a tablet, a computer, or the original meaning of a military ground control station (GCS). Recently control from wearable devices, human movement recognition, human brain waves was also demonstrated.
Remote network system, such as satellite duplex data links for some military powers. Downstream digital video over mobile networks has also entered consumer markets, while direct UAV control uplink over the celullar mesh and LTE have been demonstrated and are in trials.
Another aircraft, serving as a relay or mobile control station – military manned-unmanned teaming (MUM-T).
A protocol MAVLink is increasingly becoming popular to carry Command and Control data between the Ground control and the vehicle
Autonomy
ICAO classifies unmanned aircraft as either remotely piloted aircraft or fully autonomous. Actual UAVs may offer intermediate degrees of autonomy. E.g., a vehicle that is remotely piloted in most contexts may have an autonomous return-to-base operation.
Basic autonomy comes from proprioceptive sensors. Advanced autonomy calls for situational awareness, knowledge about the environment surrounding the aircraft from exterioceptive sensors: sensor fusion integrates information from multiple sensors.
Basic principles
One way to achieve autonomous control employs multiple control-loop layers, as in hierarchical control systems. As of 2016 the low-layer loops (i.e. for flight control) tick as fast as 32,000 times per second, while higher-level loops may cycle once per second. The principle is to decompose the aircraft's behavior into manageable "chunks", or states, with known transitions. Hierarchical control system types range from simple scripts to finite state machines, behavior trees and hierarchical task planners. The most common control mechanism used in these layers is the PID controller which can be used to achieve hover for a quadcopter by using data from the IMU to calculate precise inputs for the electronic speed controllers and motors.
Examples of mid-layer algorithms:
Path planning: determining an optimal path for vehicle to follow while meeting mission objectives and constraints, such as obstacles or fuel requirements
Trajectory generation (motion planning): determining control maneuvers to take in order to follow a given path or to go from one location to another
Trajectory regulation: constraining a vehicle within some tolerance to a trajectory
Evolved UAV hierarchical task planners use methods like state tree searches or genetic algorithms.
Autonomy features
UAV manufacturers often build in specific autonomous operations, such as:
Self-level: attitude stabilization on the pitch and roll axes.
Altitude hold: The aircraft maintains its altitude using barometric or ground sensors.
Hover/position hold: Keep level pitch and roll, stable yaw heading and altitude while maintaining position using GNSS or inertal sensors.
Headless mode: Pitch control relative to the position of the pilot rather than relative to the vehicle's axes.
Care-free: automatic roll and yaw control while moving horizontally
Take-off and landing (using a variety of aircraft or ground-based sensors and systems; see also:Autoland)
Failsafe: automatic landing or return-to-home upon loss of control signal
Return-to-home: Fly back to the point of takeoff (often gaining altitude first to avoid possible intervening obstructions such as trees or buildings).
Follow-me: Maintain relative position to a moving pilot or other object using GNSS, image recognition or homing beacon.
GPS waypoint navigation: Using GNSS to navigate to an intermediate location on a travel path.
Orbit around an object: Similar to Follow-me but continuously circle a target.
Pre-programmed aerobatics (such as rolls and loops)
Functions
Full autonomy is available for specific tasks, such as airborne refueling or ground-based battery switching; but higher-level tasks call for greater computing, sensing and actuating capabilities. One approach to quantifying autonomous capabilities is based on OODA terminology, as suggested by a 2002 US Air Force Research Laboratory, and used in the table below:
Medium levels of autonomy, such as reactive autonomy and high levels using cognitive autonomy, have already been achieved to some extent and are very active research fields.
Reactive autonomy
Reactive autonomy, such as collective flight, real-time collision avoidance, wall following and corridor centring, relies on telecommunication and situational awareness provided by range sensors: optic flow, lidars (light radars), radars, sonars.
Most range sensors analyze electromagnetic radiation, reflected off the environment and coming to the sensor. The cameras (for visual flow) act as simple receivers. Lidars, radars and sonars (with sound mechanical waves) emit and receive waves, measuring the round-trip transit time. UAV cameras do not require emitting power, reducing total consumption.
Radars and sonars are mostly used for military applications.
Reactive autonomy has in some forms already reached consumer markets: it may be widely available in less than a decade.
Simultaneous localization and mapping
SLAM combines odometry and external data to represent the world and the position of the UAV in it in three dimensions. High-altitude outdoor navigation does not require large vertical fields-of-view and can rely on GPS coordinates (which makes it simple mapping rather than SLAM).
Two related research fields are photogrammetry and LIDAR, especially in low-altitude and indoor 3D environments.
Indoor photogrammetric and stereophotogrammetric SLAM has been demonstrated with quadcopters.
Lidar platforms with heavy, costly and gimbaled traditional laser platforms are proven. Research attempts to address production cost, 2D to 3D expansion, power-to-range ratio, weight and dimensions. LED range-finding applications are commercialized for low-distance sensing capabilities. Research investigates hybridization between light emission and computing power: phased array spatial light modulators, and frequency-modulated-continuous-wave (FMCW) MEMS-tunable vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs).
Swarming
Robot swarming refers to networks of agents able to dynamically reconfigure as elements leave or enter the network. They provide greater flexibility than multi-agent cooperation. Swarming may open the path to data fusion. Some bio-inspired flight swarms use steering behaviors and flocking.[clarification needed]
Future military potential
In the military sector, American Predators and Reapers are made for counterterrorism operations and in war zones in which the enemy lacks sufficient firepower to shoot them down. They are not designed to withstand antiaircraft defenses or air-to-air combat. In September 2013, the chief of the US Air Combat Command stated that current UAVs were "useless in a contested environment" unless manned aircraft were there to protect them. A 2012 Congressional Research Service (CRS) report speculated that in the future, UAVs may be able to perform tasks beyond intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and strikes; the CRS report listed air-to-air combat ("a more difficult future task") as possible future undertakings. The Department of Defense's Unmanned Systems Integrated Roadmap FY2013-2038 foresees a more important place for UAVs in combat. Issues include extended capabilities, human-UAV interaction, managing increased information flux, increased autonomy and developing UAV-specific munitions. DARPA's project of systems of systems, or General Atomics work may augur future warfare scenarios, the latter disclosing Avenger swarms equipped with High Energy Liquid Laser Area Defense System (HELLADS).
Cognitive radio
Cognitive radio[clarification needed] technology may have UAV applications.
Learning capabilities
UAVs may exploit distributed neural networks.
Market
Military
The global military UAV market is dominated by companies based in the United States and Israel. By sale numbers, The US held over 60% military-market share in 2017. Four of top five military UAV manufactures are American including General Atomics, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and Boeing, followed by the Chinese company CASC. Israel companies mainly focus on small surveillance UAV system and by quantity of drones, Israel exported 60.7% (2014) of UAV on the market while the United States export 23.9% (2014); top importers of military UAV are The United Kingdom (33.9%) and India (13.2%). United States alone operated over 9,000 military UAVs in 2014. General Atomics is the dominant manufacturer with the Global Hawk and Predator/Mariner systems product-line.
Civilian
The civilian drone market is dominated by Chinese companies. Chinese drone manufacturer DJI alone has 75% of civilian-market share in 2017 with $11 billion forecast global sales in 2020. Followed by French company Parrot with $110m and US company 3DRobotics with $21.6m in 2014. As of March 2018, more than one million UAVs (878,000 hobbyist and 122,000 commercial) were registered with the U.S. FAA. 2018 NPD point to consumers increasingly purchasing drones with more advanced features with 33 percent growth in both the $500+ and $1000+ market segments.
Civilian UAV market is relatively new compared to military. Companies are emerging in both developed and developing nations at the same time. Many early stage startups have received support and funding from investors like in United States and by government agencies as the case in India. Some universities offer research and training programs or degrees. Private entities also provide online and in-person training programs for both recreational and commercial UAV use.
Consumer drones are also widely used by military organizations worldwide because of the cost-effective nature of consumer product. In 2018, Israeli military started to use DJI Mavic and Matrice series of UAV for light reconnaissance mission since the civilian drones are easier to use and have higher reliability. DJI drones is also the most widely used commercial unmanned aerial system that the US Army has employed.
Lighted drones are beginning to be used in nighttime displays for artistic and advertising purposes.
Transport
The AIA reports large cargo and passengers drones should be certified and introduced over the next 20 years. Sensor-carrying large drones are expected from 2018; short-haul, low altitude freighters outside cities from 2025; long-haul cargo flights by the mid-2030s and then passenger flights by 2040. Spending should rise from a few hundred million dollars on research and development in 2018 to $4 billion by 2028 and $30 billion by 2036.
Development considerations
Animal imitation – ethology
Flapping-wing ornithopters, imitating birds or insects, are a research field in microUAVs. Their inherent stealth recommends them for spy missions.
The Nano Hummingbird is commercially available, while sub-1g microUAVs inspired by flies, albeit using a power tether, can "land" on vertical surfaces.
Other projects include unmanned "beetles" and other insects.
Research is exploring miniature optic-flow sensors, called ocellis, mimicking the compound insect eyes formed from multiple facets, which can transmit data to neuromorphic chips able to treat optic flow as well as light intensity discrepancies.
Endurance
UAV endurance is not constrained by the physiological capabilities of a human pilot.
Because of their small size, low weight, low vibration and high power to weight ratio, Wankel rotary engines are used in many large UAVs. Their engine rotors cannot seize; the engine is not susceptible to shock-cooling during descent and it does not require an enriched fuel mixture for cooling at high power. These attributes reduce fuel usage, increasing range or payload.
Proper drone cooling is essential for long-term drone endurance. Overheating and subsequent engine failure is the most common cause of drone failure.
Hydrogen fuel cells, using hydrogen power, may be able to extend the endurance of small UAVs, up to several hours.
Micro air vehicles endurance is so far best achieved with flapping-wing UAVs, followed by planes and multirotors standing last, due to lower Reynolds number.
Solar-electric UAVs, a concept originally championed by the AstroFlight Sunrise in 1974, have achieved flight times of several weeks.
Solar-powered atmospheric satellites ("atmosats") designed for operating at altitudes exceeding 20 km (12 miles, or 60,000 feet) for as long as five years could potentially perform duties more economically and with more versatility than low earth orbit satellites. Likely applications include weather monitoring, disaster recovery, earth imaging and communications.
Electric UAVs powered by microwave power transmission or laser power beaming are other potential endurance solutions.
Another application for a high endurance UAV would be to "stare" at a battlefield for a long interval (ARGUS-IS, Gorgon Stare, Integrated Sensor Is Structure) to record events that could then be played backwards to track battlefield activities.
Lengthy endurance flights
| UAV | Flight time hours:minutes | Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boeing Condor | 58:11 | 1989 | The aircraft is currently in the Hiller Aviation Museum. |
| General Atomics GNAT | 40:00 | 1992 | |
| TAM-5 | 38:52 | 11 August 2003 | Smallest UAV to cross the Atlantic |
| QinetiQ Zephyr Solar Electric | 54:00 | September 2007 | |
| RQ-4 Global Hawk | 33:06 | 22 March 2008 | Set an endurance record for a full-scale, operational unmanned aircraft. |
| QinetiQ Zephyr Solar Electric | 82:37 | 28–31 July 2008 | |
| QinetiQ Zephyr Solar Electric | 336:22 | 9–23 July 2010 |
Reliability
Reliability improvements target all aspects of UAV systems, using resilience engineering and fault tolerance techniques.
Individual reliability covers robustness of flight controllers, to ensure safety without excessive redundancy to minimize cost and weight. Besides, dynamic assessment of flight envelope allows damage-resilient UAVs, using non-linear analysis with ad-hoc designed loops or neural networks. UAV software liability is bending toward the design and certifications of manned avionics software.
Swarm resilience involves maintaining operational capabilities and reconfiguring tasks given unit failures.
Applications
There are numerous civilian, commercial, military, and aerospace applications for UAVs. These include:
Civil
Disaster relief, archeology, conservation (pollution monitoring and anti-poaching), law enforcement, crime, and terrorism
Commercial
Aerial surveillance, filmmaking, journalism, scientific research, surveying, cargo transport, and agriculture
Military
Reconnaissance, attack, demining, and target practice
Existing UAVs
UAVs are being developed and deployed by many countries around the world. Due to their wide proliferation, no comprehensive list of UAV systems exists.
The export of UAVs or technology capable of carrying a 500 kg payload at least 300 km is restricted in many countries by the Missile Technology Control Regime.
Safety and security
Air traffic
UAVs can threaten airspace security in numerous ways, including unintentional collisions or other interference with other aircraft, deliberate attacks or by distracting pilots or flight controllers. The first incident of a drone-airplane collision occurred in mid-October 2017 in Quebec City, Canada. The first recorded instance of a drone collision with a hot air balloon occurred on 10 August 2018 in Driggs, Idaho, United States; although there was no significant damage to the balloon nor any injuries to its 3 occupants, the balloon pilot reported the incident to the NTSB, stating that "I hope this incident helps create a conversation of respect for nature, the airspace, and rules and regulations.”
Malicious use
UAVs could be loaded with dangerous payloads, and crashed into vulnerable targets. Payloads could include explosives, chemical, radiologial or biological hazards. UAVs with generally non-lethal payloads could possibly be hacked and put to malicious purposes. Anti-UAV systems are being developed by states to counter this threat. This is, however, proving difficult. As Dr J. Rogers stated in an interview to A&T "There is a big debate out there at the moment about what the best way is to counter these small UAVs, whether they are used by hobbyists causing a bit of a nuisance or in a more sinister manner by a terrorist actor.”
By 2017, drones were being used to drop contraband into prisons.
Security vulnerabilities
The interest in UAVs cyber security has been raised greatly after the Predator UAV video stream hijacking incident in 2009, where Islamic militants used cheap, off-the-shelf equipment to stream video feeds from a UAV. Another risk is the possibility of hijacking or jamming a UAV in flight. Several security researchers have made public some vulnerabilities in commercial UAVs, in some cases even providing full source code or tools to reproduce their attacks. At a workshop on UAVs and privacy in October 2016, researchers from the Federal Trade Commission showed they were able to hack into three different consumer quadcopters and noted that UAV manufacturers can make their UAVs more secure by the basic security measures of encrypting the Wi-Fi signal and adding password protection.
Wildfires
In the United States, flying close to a wildfire is punishable by a maximum $25,000 fine. Nonetheless, in 2014 and 2015, firefighting air support in California was hindered on several occasions, including at the Lake Fire and the North Fire. In response, California legislators introduced a bill that would allow firefighters to disable UAVs which invaded restricted airspace. The FAA later required registration of most UAVs.
The use of UAVs is also being investigated to help detect and fight wildfires, whether through observation or launching pyrotechnic devices to start backfires.
Source from Wikipedia
Soft robotics
Soft Robotics is the specific subfield of robotics dealing with constructing robots from highly compliant materials, similar to those found in living organisms.
Soft robotics draws heavily from the way in which living organisms move and adapt to their surroundings. In contrast to robots built from rigid materials, soft robots allow for increased flexibility and adaptability for accomplishing tasks, as well as improved safety when working around humans. These characteristics allow for its potential use in the fields of medicine and manufacturing.
Types and designs
The bulk of the field of soft robotics is based upon the design and construction of robots made completely from compliant materials, with the end result being similar to invertebrates like worms and octopuses. The motion of these robots is difficult to model, as continuum mechanics apply to them, and they are sometimes referred to as continuum robots. Soft Robotics is the specific sub-field of robotics dealing with constructing robots from highly compliant materials, similar to those found in living organisms. Similarly, soft robotics also draws heavily from the way in which these living organisms move and adapt to their surroundings. This allows scientists to use soft robots to understand biological phenomena using experiments that cannot be easily performed on the original biological counterparts. In contrast to robots built from rigid materials, soft robots allow for increased flexibility and adaptability for accomplishing tasks, as well as improved safety when working around humans. These characteristics allow for its potential use in the fields of medicine and manufacturing. However, there exist rigid robots that are also capable of continuum deformations, most notably the snake-arm robot.
Also, certain soft robotic mechanics may be used as a piece in a larger, potentially rigid robot. Soft robotic end effectors exist for grabbing and manipulating objects, and they have the advantage of producing a low force that is good for holding delicate objects without breaking them.
In addition, hybrid soft-rigid robots may be built using an internal rigid framework with soft exteriors for safety. The soft exterior may be multifunctional, as it can act as both the actuators for the robot, similar to muscles in vertebrates, and as padding in case of a collision with a person.
Biomimicry
Plant cells can inherently produce hydrostatic pressure due to a solute concentration gradient between the cytoplasm and external surroundings (osmotic potential). Further, plants can adjust this concentration through the movement of ions across the cell membrane. This then changes the shape and volume of the plant as it responds to this change in hydrostatic pressure. This pressure derived shape evolution is desirable for soft robotics and can be emulated to create pressure adaptive materials through the use of fluid flow. The following equation models the cell volume change rate:
is the rate of volume change.
is the cell membrane.
is the hydraulic conductivity of the material.
is the change in hydrostatic pressure.
is the change in osmotic potential.
This principle has been leveraged in the creation of pressure systems for soft robotics. These systems are composed of soft resins and contain multiple fluid sacs with semi-permeable membranes. The semi-permeability allows for fluid transport that then leads to pressure generation. This combination of fluid transport and pressure generation then leads to shape and volume change.
Another biologically inherent shape changing mechanism is that of hygroscopic shape change. In this mechanism, plant cells react to changes in humidity. When the surrounding atmosphere has a high humidity, the plant cells swell, but when the surrounding atmosphere has a low humidity, the plant cells shrink. This volume change has been observed in pollen grains and pine cone scales.
Scientific challenges
According to the IEEE.org group, these challenges are interdisciplinary and some still consider prospective; they concern in particular:
the contributions of biomimetics A large part of living beings is made up of soft beings, and the internal organs are almost always so.
methods and tools (software) for modeling and simulation of " soft robotic organs " (possibly complex and printed "monoblock" in 3D); Many robots have a form reminiscent of invertebrates, but the soft robotics can also contribute to creating complex humanoid robots.
studies of unconventional flexible materials (still in exploratory phase);
the hierarchical inventory of flexible materials available and useful or desirable for all or part of robotic applications (conventional and future);
the best tools and methods of manufacturing and / or assembling this type of robot;
the integration of sensors that should evolve towards "flexible and extensible" sensors 7 (including for a possible photovoltaic skin) in a more or less elastic and deformable structure;
an actuation revised to be adapted to the soft robot, possibly "modular" and / or enhancing the systems of "passive adaptations" (energy saving);
internal self-organization and distributed control capabilities
completely revised control systems (cobotics);
the prototyping, testing (including aging);
reinforcement and a better sharing of knowledge and technological know-how in flexible robotics;
opportunities for "self-redress", in relation to resilience issues;
the self-replication;
applications for a "soft robotics".
Robotic specificities
A flexible robot interacts differently with its environment, since it can generate or undergo elastic deformations more or less constrained by its morphology, its size, the degree of elasticity and coherence of its structure.
It is often - but not necessarily - biomimetic (or bio-inspired) and always characterized by the use of specific materials.
His actuators are partly different or adapted.
They have disadvantages and advantages over rigid robots.
Disadvantages
The field of soft robotics is still very emerging. It has proved itself only by a few prototypes. There are no or few spare parts or soft robots marketed, and R & D funding is still preferentially oriented towards classical robotics;
the behavior of soft materials (and flexible structures especially when they are complex) is far more difficult to model than hard materials, and therefore more difficult to control and operate;
Some of the soft materials that constitute them are vulnerable to certain external aggressions (although in some cases the "soft" character also allows to absorb the energy of shocks or effects of "punching" and to protect the robot.
Advantages
the deformable structures allow a soft robot to better adapt to certain dynamic circumstances or tasks, including in an uncertain environment (eg displacement in a fluid with high turbulence, locomotion in uneven ground and unknown, action of gripping object of form, weight and fragility unknown).. or when in contact with a living being or an organ (in the case of a surgical or industrial robot);
the rapid progress of elastomer injection, then of the 3D printing of certain elastomers makes it possible to mold (and today to print) elastic polymer blends, of different elasticity, opening up new possibilities; It seems even possible in the near future to associate synthetic polymers with biopolymers, or with living cells;
Some soft and elastic materials have an energetic interest: for example phase change materials, deformable structures (eg springs) or shape memory or integrating a compressed gas can also theoretically store and release a certain amount of energy. This energy can be used for the movements and changes of shape of the robot and / or be mobilized for other tasks;
After having been torn, pierced or slightly damaged, certain elastomers made up of thermoreversible covalent networks (so-called "Diels-Alder Polymers" or "Diels-Alder Polymers" for English speakers) can (simply by being slightly warmed and then cooled) reassemble; Robust envelopes or organs capable of self-healing thus become possible; Tests published in 2017 by Science Robotics show that materials can then repair itself after cuts, then moves back despite some scars almost complete performance even after two cycles repair / healing. This has been successfully tested for three pneumatic actuators flexible robotics (flexible forceps, hand and artificial muscles) self-healing after injuries by piercing, tearing or blows on the polymer in question;
Soft robotics are often much less expensive than the hard parts of "classic" robots.
Manufacturing
Conventional manufacturing techniques, such as subtractive techniques like drilling and milling, are unhelpful when it comes to constructing soft robots as these robots have complex shapes with deformable bodies. Therefore, more advanced manufacturing techniques have been developed. Those include Shape Deposition Manufacturing (SDM), the Smart Composite Microstructure (SCM) process, and 3D multimaterial printing..
SDM is a type of rapid prototyping whereby deposition and machining occur cyclically. Essentially, one deposits a material, machines it, embeds a desired structure, deposits a support for said structure, and then further machines the product to a final shape that includes the deposited material and the embedded part. Embedded hardware includes circuits, sensors, and actuators, and scientists have successfully embedded controls inside of polymeric materials to create soft robots, such as the Stickybot and the iSprawl.
SCM is a process whereby one combines rigid bodies of carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) with flexible polymer ligaments. The flexible polymer act as joints for the skeleton. With this process, an integrated structure of the CFRP and polymer ligaments is created through the use of laser machining followed by lamination. This SCM process is utilized in the production of mesoscale robots as the polymer connectors serve as low friction alternatives to pin joints.
3D printing can now be used to print a wide range of silicone inks using Robocasting also known as direct ink writing (DIW). This manufacturing route allows for a seamless production of fluidic elastomer actuators with locally defined mechanical properties. It further enables a digital fabrication of pneumatic silicone actuators exhibiting programmable bioinspired architectures and motions. A wide range of fully functional softrobots have been printed using this method including bending, twisting, grabbing and contracting motion. This technique avoids some of the drawbacks of conventional manufacturing routes such as delamination between glued parts. Another additive manufacturing method that produces shape morphing materials whose shape is photosensitive, thermally activated, or water responsive. Essentially, these polymers can automatically change shape upon interaction with water, light, or heat. One such example of a shape morphing material was created through the use of light reactive ink-jet printing onto a polystyrene target. Additionally, shape memory polymers have been rapid prototyped that comprise two different components: a skeleton and a hinge material. Upon printing, the material is heated to a temperature higher than the glass transition temperature of the hinge material. This allows for deformation of the hinge material, while not affecting the skeleton material. Further, this polymer can be continually reformed through heating.
Control
All soft robots require some system to generate reaction forces, to allow the robot to move in and interact with its environment. Due to the compliant nature of these robots, this system must be able to move the robot without the use of rigid materials to act as the bones in organisms, or the metal frame in rigid robots. However, several solutions to this engineering problem exist and have found use, each possessing advantages and disadvantages.
One of these systems uses Dielectric Elastomeric Actuators (DEAs), materials that change shape through the application of a high-voltage electric field. These materials can produce high forces, and have high specific power (W/kg). However, these materials are best suited for applications in rigids robots, as they become inefficient when they do not act upon a rigid skeleton. Additionally, the high-voltages required can become a limiting factor in the potential practical applications for these robots.
Another system uses springs made of shape-memory alloy. Although made of metal, a traditionally rigid material, the springs are made from very thin wires and are just as compliant as other soft materials. These springs have a very high force-to-mass ratio, but stretch through the application of heat, which is inefficient energy-wise.
Pneumatic artificial muscles are yet another method used for controlling soft robots. By changing the pressure inside a flexible tube, it will act as a muscle, contracting and extending, and applying force to what it’s attached to. Through the use of valves, the robot may maintain a given shape using these muscles with no additional energy input. However, this method generally requires an external source of compressed air to function.
History
Of clocks, of automata and mechanical toys use for several decades various forms of springs and sometimes leather, fabric forming flexible connections, or twisted elastic or compressed air in a flask as an energy reservoir. But the polymers needed to make real, strong, durable robots have only been available for a few decades.
For about half a century, industrial robots have been rigid and rather adapted to fast and repetitive tasks. More or less flexible or soft materials were sometimes used in their construction, but were often of secondary importance; they were reserved for moving cables, fluid lines, joint jackets, vacuum systems (for gripping fragile objects, for example) or shock damping, etc. The science fiction in comics, novels and movies have popularized robots often have metallic armor (or sometimes very humanoid, including with a synthetic skin).
From 2009 to 2012, the appearance of technical silicones, various other moldable polymers, shape memory materials made it possible to explore new avenues. The use of electroactive polymers and the prospect of being able to produce artificial muscle systems (including those based on electroactive hydrogel), coupled with the regular improvement of the performance of 3D printers could, in particular in connection with the development of biomimeticsboost the development of a soft robotics allowing new abilities such as compression, stretching, torsion, swelling, morphing, etc. in ways that would be impossible with rigid elements of classical robotics.
In 2013, at an international conference devoted to artificial intelligence and in an article summarizing their point of view, Rolf Pfeifer and his colleagues at the University of Zurich present soft robots and biomimetics as the next generation of "intelligent machines".
Recent discoveries and demonstrations have also (and for example) focused on:
"gas robotics" (which focuses on robots lighter than air)
the interest of soft and prehensile appendages, like the elephant horn or tentacles, possibly miniaturized; in this case, muscular hydrostats often made almost entirely of muscular and connective tissue may change their shape if they are pressurized by osmosis, as well as in certain plant or fungal organs.
a self-winding yarn and made highly stretchable (imitating the principle of the drops that coat the cobwebs)
the use of simple materials such as grains of sand that can be "shaped" via the principle of "jamming transition" to give the equivalent of a robotic forceps first soft and enveloping, that it can then be hardened at will
Materials with shape memory
ionic polymer metal composites
dielectric elastomers (or DEs for Dielectric elastomers.
the use of 3D printing for example to produce a cordless or battery-free soft-body robot where a small reservoir of hydrogen peroxide serves as a source of gas (which can be activated by putting the peroxide in contact with a catalyst (platinum) capable of inflating a network of 3D-printed pneumatic chambers (eg Octobot presented in 2016).
The forecasters expect robots capable of self-repair, grow, recycle or biodegrade, and can configure their morphology for different tasks and / or environment.
Soft micro- robots (possibly microscopic) are also expected by some (as a logical consequence of the crossing of soft robotics and miniaturization) but others like (Jay) Kim wonder why; are there compelling or motivating reasons to invent them?
Uses and applications
Soft robots can be implemented in the medical profession, specifically for invasive surgery. Soft robots can be made to assist surgeries due to their shape changing properties. Shape change is important as a soft robot could navigate around different structures in the human body by adjusting its form. This could be accomplished through the use of fluidic actuation.
Soft robots may also be used for the creation of flexible exosuits, for rehabilitation of patients, assisting the elderly, or simply enhancing the user’s strength. A team from Harvard created an exosuit using these materials in order to give the advantages of the additional strength provided by an exosuit, without the disadvantages that come with how rigid materials restrict a person’s natural movement.
Traditionally, manufacturing robots have been isolated from human workers due to safety concerns, as a rigid robot colliding with a human could easily lead to injury due to the fast-paced motion of the robot. However, soft robots could work alongside humans safely, as in a collision the compliant nature of the robot would prevent or minimize any potential injury.
International journals
Soft Robotics (SoRo)
Soft Robotics section of Frontiers in Robotics and AI
International events
2018 Robosoft, first IEEE International Conference on Soft Robotics, April 24–28, 2018, Livorno, Italy
2017 IROS 2017 Workshop on Soft Morphological Design for Haptic Sensation, Interaction and Display, 24 September 2017, Vancouver, BC, Canada
2016 First Soft Robotics Challenge, April 29–30, Livorno, Italy
2016 Soft Robotics week, April 25–30, Livorno, Italy
2015 "Soft Robotics: Actuation, Integration, and Applications – Blending research perspectives for a leap forward in soft robotics technology" at ICRA2015, Seattle WA
2014 Workshop on Advances on Soft Robotics, 2014 Robotics Science an Systems (RSS) Conference, Berkeley, CA, July 13, 2014
2013 International Workshop on Soft Robotics and Morphological Computation, Monte Verità, July 14–19, 2013
2012 Summer School on Soft Robotics, Zurich, June 18–22, 2012
In popular culture
The 2014 Disney film Big Hero 6 revolved around a soft robot, Baymax, originally designed for use in the healthcare industry. In the film, Baymax is portrayed as a large yet unintimidating robot with an inflated vinyl exterior surrounding a mechanical skeleton. The basis of Baymax concept comes from real life research on applications of soft robotics in the healthcare field, such as roboticist Chris Atkeson's work at Carnegie Mellon's Robotics Institute.
Scientific Community
Some elements of "classic" robots (industrial, military, etc.) have long been made of soft and sometimes elastic materials, but the idea of robots almost entirely "soft" is recent. It associates with classical robotics new types of modeling, and disciplines that were only slightly (polymer chemistry in particular). The principles of design and construction are largely to be reviewed.
At the beginning of 2010, an international scientific and technical community gathered around the idea of exploring the tracks opened by soft robotics, with:
since October 2012, an IEEE RAS technical committee dedicated to soft robotics (IEEE RAS Technical Committee on Soft Robotics) whose mission is to coordinate the research community;
since 2014, a newspaper dedicated to the deformable robotic is published every three months.
in France, a research team from INRIA has made it its specialty.
Innovation
One of the challenges to be met (including the repair of flexible robots) is to have flexible and elastic and waterproof glue. This seems to be about to happen: mid- 2017, academic physicists have succeeded in producing in the laboratory a highly elastic cyanoacrylate glue that can stick hard and / or soft substances (including electronic components) to hydrogels (materials like "Gels" used in certain medical devices and flexible robots). This opens the way for the creation of batteries and electrical circuits truly elastic and stretchable. The cyanoacrylate is associated with an organic component (which, without being a solvent, diffuses rapidly in the melt so as to prevent it becoming brittle). At the time of pressing the setting of the adhesive takes a few seconds 29. The elasticity can reach 2000%.
In 2017, the researchers succeeded in developing the first soft robot able to move without a motor or mechanical system, an innovation that, using memory alloys, opens the way to many possibilities in both aerospace and in nanoscopic research.
Source from Wikipedia
Soft robotics draws heavily from the way in which living organisms move and adapt to their surroundings. In contrast to robots built from rigid materials, soft robots allow for increased flexibility and adaptability for accomplishing tasks, as well as improved safety when working around humans. These characteristics allow for its potential use in the fields of medicine and manufacturing.
Types and designs
The bulk of the field of soft robotics is based upon the design and construction of robots made completely from compliant materials, with the end result being similar to invertebrates like worms and octopuses. The motion of these robots is difficult to model, as continuum mechanics apply to them, and they are sometimes referred to as continuum robots. Soft Robotics is the specific sub-field of robotics dealing with constructing robots from highly compliant materials, similar to those found in living organisms. Similarly, soft robotics also draws heavily from the way in which these living organisms move and adapt to their surroundings. This allows scientists to use soft robots to understand biological phenomena using experiments that cannot be easily performed on the original biological counterparts. In contrast to robots built from rigid materials, soft robots allow for increased flexibility and adaptability for accomplishing tasks, as well as improved safety when working around humans. These characteristics allow for its potential use in the fields of medicine and manufacturing. However, there exist rigid robots that are also capable of continuum deformations, most notably the snake-arm robot.
Also, certain soft robotic mechanics may be used as a piece in a larger, potentially rigid robot. Soft robotic end effectors exist for grabbing and manipulating objects, and they have the advantage of producing a low force that is good for holding delicate objects without breaking them.
In addition, hybrid soft-rigid robots may be built using an internal rigid framework with soft exteriors for safety. The soft exterior may be multifunctional, as it can act as both the actuators for the robot, similar to muscles in vertebrates, and as padding in case of a collision with a person.
Biomimicry
Plant cells can inherently produce hydrostatic pressure due to a solute concentration gradient between the cytoplasm and external surroundings (osmotic potential). Further, plants can adjust this concentration through the movement of ions across the cell membrane. This then changes the shape and volume of the plant as it responds to this change in hydrostatic pressure. This pressure derived shape evolution is desirable for soft robotics and can be emulated to create pressure adaptive materials through the use of fluid flow. The following equation models the cell volume change rate:
is the rate of volume change.
is the rate of volume change.is the cell membrane.
is the cell membrane.is the hydraulic conductivity of the material.
is the hydraulic conductivity of the material.is the change in hydrostatic pressure.
is the change in hydrostatic pressure.is the change in osmotic potential.
is the change in osmotic potential.This principle has been leveraged in the creation of pressure systems for soft robotics. These systems are composed of soft resins and contain multiple fluid sacs with semi-permeable membranes. The semi-permeability allows for fluid transport that then leads to pressure generation. This combination of fluid transport and pressure generation then leads to shape and volume change.
Another biologically inherent shape changing mechanism is that of hygroscopic shape change. In this mechanism, plant cells react to changes in humidity. When the surrounding atmosphere has a high humidity, the plant cells swell, but when the surrounding atmosphere has a low humidity, the plant cells shrink. This volume change has been observed in pollen grains and pine cone scales.
Scientific challenges
According to the IEEE.org group, these challenges are interdisciplinary and some still consider prospective; they concern in particular:
the contributions of biomimetics A large part of living beings is made up of soft beings, and the internal organs are almost always so.
methods and tools (software) for modeling and simulation of " soft robotic organs " (possibly complex and printed "monoblock" in 3D); Many robots have a form reminiscent of invertebrates, but the soft robotics can also contribute to creating complex humanoid robots.
studies of unconventional flexible materials (still in exploratory phase);
the hierarchical inventory of flexible materials available and useful or desirable for all or part of robotic applications (conventional and future);
the best tools and methods of manufacturing and / or assembling this type of robot;
the integration of sensors that should evolve towards "flexible and extensible" sensors 7 (including for a possible photovoltaic skin) in a more or less elastic and deformable structure;
an actuation revised to be adapted to the soft robot, possibly "modular" and / or enhancing the systems of "passive adaptations" (energy saving);
internal self-organization and distributed control capabilities
completely revised control systems (cobotics);
the prototyping, testing (including aging);
reinforcement and a better sharing of knowledge and technological know-how in flexible robotics;
opportunities for "self-redress", in relation to resilience issues;
the self-replication;
applications for a "soft robotics".
Robotic specificities
A flexible robot interacts differently with its environment, since it can generate or undergo elastic deformations more or less constrained by its morphology, its size, the degree of elasticity and coherence of its structure.
It is often - but not necessarily - biomimetic (or bio-inspired) and always characterized by the use of specific materials.
His actuators are partly different or adapted.
They have disadvantages and advantages over rigid robots.
Disadvantages
The field of soft robotics is still very emerging. It has proved itself only by a few prototypes. There are no or few spare parts or soft robots marketed, and R & D funding is still preferentially oriented towards classical robotics;
the behavior of soft materials (and flexible structures especially when they are complex) is far more difficult to model than hard materials, and therefore more difficult to control and operate;
Some of the soft materials that constitute them are vulnerable to certain external aggressions (although in some cases the "soft" character also allows to absorb the energy of shocks or effects of "punching" and to protect the robot.
Advantages
the deformable structures allow a soft robot to better adapt to certain dynamic circumstances or tasks, including in an uncertain environment (eg displacement in a fluid with high turbulence, locomotion in uneven ground and unknown, action of gripping object of form, weight and fragility unknown).. or when in contact with a living being or an organ (in the case of a surgical or industrial robot);
the rapid progress of elastomer injection, then of the 3D printing of certain elastomers makes it possible to mold (and today to print) elastic polymer blends, of different elasticity, opening up new possibilities; It seems even possible in the near future to associate synthetic polymers with biopolymers, or with living cells;
Some soft and elastic materials have an energetic interest: for example phase change materials, deformable structures (eg springs) or shape memory or integrating a compressed gas can also theoretically store and release a certain amount of energy. This energy can be used for the movements and changes of shape of the robot and / or be mobilized for other tasks;
After having been torn, pierced or slightly damaged, certain elastomers made up of thermoreversible covalent networks (so-called "Diels-Alder Polymers" or "Diels-Alder Polymers" for English speakers) can (simply by being slightly warmed and then cooled) reassemble; Robust envelopes or organs capable of self-healing thus become possible; Tests published in 2017 by Science Robotics show that materials can then repair itself after cuts, then moves back despite some scars almost complete performance even after two cycles repair / healing. This has been successfully tested for three pneumatic actuators flexible robotics (flexible forceps, hand and artificial muscles) self-healing after injuries by piercing, tearing or blows on the polymer in question;
Soft robotics are often much less expensive than the hard parts of "classic" robots.
Manufacturing
Conventional manufacturing techniques, such as subtractive techniques like drilling and milling, are unhelpful when it comes to constructing soft robots as these robots have complex shapes with deformable bodies. Therefore, more advanced manufacturing techniques have been developed. Those include Shape Deposition Manufacturing (SDM), the Smart Composite Microstructure (SCM) process, and 3D multimaterial printing..
SDM is a type of rapid prototyping whereby deposition and machining occur cyclically. Essentially, one deposits a material, machines it, embeds a desired structure, deposits a support for said structure, and then further machines the product to a final shape that includes the deposited material and the embedded part. Embedded hardware includes circuits, sensors, and actuators, and scientists have successfully embedded controls inside of polymeric materials to create soft robots, such as the Stickybot and the iSprawl.
SCM is a process whereby one combines rigid bodies of carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) with flexible polymer ligaments. The flexible polymer act as joints for the skeleton. With this process, an integrated structure of the CFRP and polymer ligaments is created through the use of laser machining followed by lamination. This SCM process is utilized in the production of mesoscale robots as the polymer connectors serve as low friction alternatives to pin joints.
3D printing can now be used to print a wide range of silicone inks using Robocasting also known as direct ink writing (DIW). This manufacturing route allows for a seamless production of fluidic elastomer actuators with locally defined mechanical properties. It further enables a digital fabrication of pneumatic silicone actuators exhibiting programmable bioinspired architectures and motions. A wide range of fully functional softrobots have been printed using this method including bending, twisting, grabbing and contracting motion. This technique avoids some of the drawbacks of conventional manufacturing routes such as delamination between glued parts. Another additive manufacturing method that produces shape morphing materials whose shape is photosensitive, thermally activated, or water responsive. Essentially, these polymers can automatically change shape upon interaction with water, light, or heat. One such example of a shape morphing material was created through the use of light reactive ink-jet printing onto a polystyrene target. Additionally, shape memory polymers have been rapid prototyped that comprise two different components: a skeleton and a hinge material. Upon printing, the material is heated to a temperature higher than the glass transition temperature of the hinge material. This allows for deformation of the hinge material, while not affecting the skeleton material. Further, this polymer can be continually reformed through heating.
Control
All soft robots require some system to generate reaction forces, to allow the robot to move in and interact with its environment. Due to the compliant nature of these robots, this system must be able to move the robot without the use of rigid materials to act as the bones in organisms, or the metal frame in rigid robots. However, several solutions to this engineering problem exist and have found use, each possessing advantages and disadvantages.
One of these systems uses Dielectric Elastomeric Actuators (DEAs), materials that change shape through the application of a high-voltage electric field. These materials can produce high forces, and have high specific power (W/kg). However, these materials are best suited for applications in rigids robots, as they become inefficient when they do not act upon a rigid skeleton. Additionally, the high-voltages required can become a limiting factor in the potential practical applications for these robots.
Another system uses springs made of shape-memory alloy. Although made of metal, a traditionally rigid material, the springs are made from very thin wires and are just as compliant as other soft materials. These springs have a very high force-to-mass ratio, but stretch through the application of heat, which is inefficient energy-wise.
Pneumatic artificial muscles are yet another method used for controlling soft robots. By changing the pressure inside a flexible tube, it will act as a muscle, contracting and extending, and applying force to what it’s attached to. Through the use of valves, the robot may maintain a given shape using these muscles with no additional energy input. However, this method generally requires an external source of compressed air to function.
History
Of clocks, of automata and mechanical toys use for several decades various forms of springs and sometimes leather, fabric forming flexible connections, or twisted elastic or compressed air in a flask as an energy reservoir. But the polymers needed to make real, strong, durable robots have only been available for a few decades.
For about half a century, industrial robots have been rigid and rather adapted to fast and repetitive tasks. More or less flexible or soft materials were sometimes used in their construction, but were often of secondary importance; they were reserved for moving cables, fluid lines, joint jackets, vacuum systems (for gripping fragile objects, for example) or shock damping, etc. The science fiction in comics, novels and movies have popularized robots often have metallic armor (or sometimes very humanoid, including with a synthetic skin).
From 2009 to 2012, the appearance of technical silicones, various other moldable polymers, shape memory materials made it possible to explore new avenues. The use of electroactive polymers and the prospect of being able to produce artificial muscle systems (including those based on electroactive hydrogel), coupled with the regular improvement of the performance of 3D printers could, in particular in connection with the development of biomimeticsboost the development of a soft robotics allowing new abilities such as compression, stretching, torsion, swelling, morphing, etc. in ways that would be impossible with rigid elements of classical robotics.
In 2013, at an international conference devoted to artificial intelligence and in an article summarizing their point of view, Rolf Pfeifer and his colleagues at the University of Zurich present soft robots and biomimetics as the next generation of "intelligent machines".
Recent discoveries and demonstrations have also (and for example) focused on:
"gas robotics" (which focuses on robots lighter than air)
the interest of soft and prehensile appendages, like the elephant horn or tentacles, possibly miniaturized; in this case, muscular hydrostats often made almost entirely of muscular and connective tissue may change their shape if they are pressurized by osmosis, as well as in certain plant or fungal organs.
a self-winding yarn and made highly stretchable (imitating the principle of the drops that coat the cobwebs)
the use of simple materials such as grains of sand that can be "shaped" via the principle of "jamming transition" to give the equivalent of a robotic forceps first soft and enveloping, that it can then be hardened at will
Materials with shape memory
ionic polymer metal composites
dielectric elastomers (or DEs for Dielectric elastomers.
the use of 3D printing for example to produce a cordless or battery-free soft-body robot where a small reservoir of hydrogen peroxide serves as a source of gas (which can be activated by putting the peroxide in contact with a catalyst (platinum) capable of inflating a network of 3D-printed pneumatic chambers (eg Octobot presented in 2016).
The forecasters expect robots capable of self-repair, grow, recycle or biodegrade, and can configure their morphology for different tasks and / or environment.
Soft micro- robots (possibly microscopic) are also expected by some (as a logical consequence of the crossing of soft robotics and miniaturization) but others like (Jay) Kim wonder why; are there compelling or motivating reasons to invent them?
Uses and applications
Soft robots can be implemented in the medical profession, specifically for invasive surgery. Soft robots can be made to assist surgeries due to their shape changing properties. Shape change is important as a soft robot could navigate around different structures in the human body by adjusting its form. This could be accomplished through the use of fluidic actuation.
Soft robots may also be used for the creation of flexible exosuits, for rehabilitation of patients, assisting the elderly, or simply enhancing the user’s strength. A team from Harvard created an exosuit using these materials in order to give the advantages of the additional strength provided by an exosuit, without the disadvantages that come with how rigid materials restrict a person’s natural movement.
Traditionally, manufacturing robots have been isolated from human workers due to safety concerns, as a rigid robot colliding with a human could easily lead to injury due to the fast-paced motion of the robot. However, soft robots could work alongside humans safely, as in a collision the compliant nature of the robot would prevent or minimize any potential injury.
International journals
Soft Robotics (SoRo)
Soft Robotics section of Frontiers in Robotics and AI
International events
2018 Robosoft, first IEEE International Conference on Soft Robotics, April 24–28, 2018, Livorno, Italy
2017 IROS 2017 Workshop on Soft Morphological Design for Haptic Sensation, Interaction and Display, 24 September 2017, Vancouver, BC, Canada
2016 First Soft Robotics Challenge, April 29–30, Livorno, Italy
2016 Soft Robotics week, April 25–30, Livorno, Italy
2015 "Soft Robotics: Actuation, Integration, and Applications – Blending research perspectives for a leap forward in soft robotics technology" at ICRA2015, Seattle WA
2014 Workshop on Advances on Soft Robotics, 2014 Robotics Science an Systems (RSS) Conference, Berkeley, CA, July 13, 2014
2013 International Workshop on Soft Robotics and Morphological Computation, Monte Verità, July 14–19, 2013
2012 Summer School on Soft Robotics, Zurich, June 18–22, 2012
In popular culture
The 2014 Disney film Big Hero 6 revolved around a soft robot, Baymax, originally designed for use in the healthcare industry. In the film, Baymax is portrayed as a large yet unintimidating robot with an inflated vinyl exterior surrounding a mechanical skeleton. The basis of Baymax concept comes from real life research on applications of soft robotics in the healthcare field, such as roboticist Chris Atkeson's work at Carnegie Mellon's Robotics Institute.
Scientific Community
Some elements of "classic" robots (industrial, military, etc.) have long been made of soft and sometimes elastic materials, but the idea of robots almost entirely "soft" is recent. It associates with classical robotics new types of modeling, and disciplines that were only slightly (polymer chemistry in particular). The principles of design and construction are largely to be reviewed.
At the beginning of 2010, an international scientific and technical community gathered around the idea of exploring the tracks opened by soft robotics, with:
since October 2012, an IEEE RAS technical committee dedicated to soft robotics (IEEE RAS Technical Committee on Soft Robotics) whose mission is to coordinate the research community;
since 2014, a newspaper dedicated to the deformable robotic is published every three months.
in France, a research team from INRIA has made it its specialty.
Innovation
One of the challenges to be met (including the repair of flexible robots) is to have flexible and elastic and waterproof glue. This seems to be about to happen: mid- 2017, academic physicists have succeeded in producing in the laboratory a highly elastic cyanoacrylate glue that can stick hard and / or soft substances (including electronic components) to hydrogels (materials like "Gels" used in certain medical devices and flexible robots). This opens the way for the creation of batteries and electrical circuits truly elastic and stretchable. The cyanoacrylate is associated with an organic component (which, without being a solvent, diffuses rapidly in the melt so as to prevent it becoming brittle). At the time of pressing the setting of the adhesive takes a few seconds 29. The elasticity can reach 2000%.
In 2017, the researchers succeeded in developing the first soft robot able to move without a motor or mechanical system, an innovation that, using memory alloys, opens the way to many possibilities in both aerospace and in nanoscopic research.
Source from Wikipedia
订阅：
博文 (Atom)