TY - JOUR
T1 - MEMS sensors for assessing flow- related control of an underwater biomimetic robotic stingray
AU - Asadnia, Mohsen
AU - Kottapalli, Ajay Giri Prakash
AU - Haghighi, Reza
AU - Cloitre, Audren
AU - Alvarado, Pablo Valdivia Y
AU - Miao, Jianmin
AU - Triantafyllou, Michael
PY - 2015/6
Y1 - 2015/6
N2 - A major difference between manmade underwater robotic vehicles (URVs) and undersea animals is the dense arrays of sensors on the body of the latter which enable them to execute extreme control of their limbs and demonstrate super-maneuverability. There is a high demand for miniaturized, low-powered, lightweight and robust sensors that can perform sensing on URVs to improve their control and maneuverability. In this paper, we present the design, fabrication and experimental testing of two types of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) sensors that benefit the situational awareness and control of a robotic stingray. The first one is a piezoresistive liquid crystal polymer haircell flow sensor which is employed to determine the velocity of propagation of the stingray. The second one is Pb(Zr0.52Ti0.48)O3 piezoelectric micro-diaphragm pressure sensor which measures various flapping parameters of the stingray's fins that are key parameters to control the robot locomotion. The polymer flow sensors determine that by increasing the flapping frequency of the fins from 0.5 to 3 Hz the average velocity of the stingray increases from 0.05 to 0.4 BL s-1, respectively. The role of these sensors in detecting errors in control and functioning of the actuators in performing tasks like flapping at a desired amplitude and frequency, swimming at a desired velocity and direction are quantified. The proposed sensors are also used to provide inputs for a model predictive control which allows the robot to track a desired trajectory. Although a robotic stingray is used as a platform to emphasize the role of the MEMS sensors, the applications can be extended to most URVs.
AB - A major difference between manmade underwater robotic vehicles (URVs) and undersea animals is the dense arrays of sensors on the body of the latter which enable them to execute extreme control of their limbs and demonstrate super-maneuverability. There is a high demand for miniaturized, low-powered, lightweight and robust sensors that can perform sensing on URVs to improve their control and maneuverability. In this paper, we present the design, fabrication and experimental testing of two types of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) sensors that benefit the situational awareness and control of a robotic stingray. The first one is a piezoresistive liquid crystal polymer haircell flow sensor which is employed to determine the velocity of propagation of the stingray. The second one is Pb(Zr0.52Ti0.48)O3 piezoelectric micro-diaphragm pressure sensor which measures various flapping parameters of the stingray's fins that are key parameters to control the robot locomotion. The polymer flow sensors determine that by increasing the flapping frequency of the fins from 0.5 to 3 Hz the average velocity of the stingray increases from 0.05 to 0.4 BL s-1, respectively. The role of these sensors in detecting errors in control and functioning of the actuators in performing tasks like flapping at a desired amplitude and frequency, swimming at a desired velocity and direction are quantified. The proposed sensors are also used to provide inputs for a model predictive control which allows the robot to track a desired trajectory. Although a robotic stingray is used as a platform to emphasize the role of the MEMS sensors, the applications can be extended to most URVs.
KW - biomimetics
KW - MEMS pressure/flow sensors
KW - model predictive control
KW - underwater robotic vehicles
KW - underwater sensing
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84935896474&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1088/1748-3190/10/3/036008
DO - 10.1088/1748-3190/10/3/036008
M3 - Article
C2 - 25984934
AN - SCOPUS:84935896474
SN - 1748-3182
VL - 10
SP - 1
EP - 15
JO - Bioinspiration and Biomimetics
JF - Bioinspiration and Biomimetics
IS - 3
M1 - 036008
ER -