A Hybrid, Actively Compliant Manipulator/Gripper for Aerial Manipulation with a Multicopter
Liam A. Kruse, Justin M. Bradley · 2018
Unmanned Multicopters provide access to dangerous or difficult to reach areas and can accomplish tasks normally reserved for people. Aerial manipulation in this scenario could provide enhanced capabilities but is a challenging problem where design often comes down to choosing between arm-like manipulation or claw-like grippers - each of which has associated benefits and drawbacks. We present a novel, lightweight, low-cost hybrid manipulator/gripper combining characteristics of both arm-like manipulators and claw-like grippers to enable aerial manipulation during search and rescue missions using a multicopter unmanned air vehicle. The gripper is composed of tandem two degree-of-freedom fingers wherein each finger can be individually controlled, allowing for the manipulation of irregular geometric shapes and compensation for the drone's drift. We describe the design, manufacturing, and prototyping of our design and conduct a series of experiments grasping objects of different size, shape, and weight to demonstrate the versatility and benefits of our hybrid design.