Stair-Climbing robot...

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Nayyi

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ahm i am planning to build a stair-climbing robot to be used for class discussion. it for my report regarding control system. the problem is the robot should be of the size of a matchbox just imagine that. i have already found motors that would fit that size. but i dont know where to start. any ideas?
 

What is the scale? i.e. does the matchbox-sized robot have to climb real human-sized stairs or will it be climbing little scale-model-sized stairs?


Torben
 
i believe it is supposed to climb a human size stairs...that's why i dnt know how to start... just imagine a matchbox climbing stairs with about 15-18 cm high?
 
Nayyi said:
i believe it is supposed to climb a human size stairs...that's why i dnt know how to start... just imagine a matchbox climbing stairs with about 15-18 cm high?
Click to expand...

Yep, that's a stumper. Most of the ideas I'm having involve using helium balloons to just float up the stairs. It would be totally useless outside, though. . .

What size is the matchbox? Where I live, there are two common sizes (if you discount matchbooks, which are the smallest): one is about 1cm x 3cm x 4cm; the larger size is maybe 2cm x 6cm x 10cm or so.


Torben
 
ow, matchbox's here are 1.5x4x5cm in dimensions, so how about that? well its not that a matchbox will climb upstairs, but a robot that is of a size of a matchbox...
 
I've been searching for a small robot design that can do that for a few years now, and so far, I have been unable to come up with anything that is actually manufacturable by me (except for one with giant wheels):

-You got tracks and wheels which make the best use of motors, but the size of the obstacle you can climb is dependent on the size of your robot in this case- moreso for wheels than tracks
-Tracks are expensive, but legs are even more expensive and definately do not make the best use of current motors or actuators.

Of the robots that can climb stairs and also effectively move around, they are basically:
-Mars ROver-type robots where the wheels are at the end of legs:
**broken link removed**
-And tracked/tank robot that is large enough
-a monster truck type robot with HUGE wheels

If your sole ability is to climb stairs, I suggest you sacrifice everything else to achieve that goal. You are not going to get a vehicle that can climb stairs and navigate regular terrain for cheap. It's probably going to look very unlike a normal robot (like car, truck, or regular two wheeled robots) since you are sacrificing all other locomotive capabilities in order to make a cheap, small stair climber.

THis is the only one I know of:
**broken link removed**

...assuming legs (in the regular sense) are completely beyond your means, which they probably are. There are research robots out there with legs (based on Geckos) that can climb walls, and trees, as well as snakes that could probably also climb stairs. But they are very complex and very expensive.

If you must stay on the size of the matchbox to climb regular humans-scale stairs, I don't know what I would do. THe only reason insects can get over MASSIVE obstacles relative to their size is sticky feet and wings (and some can also jump really realy far). Since sticky feet and wings are probably beyond your means (or even the means of NASA engineers), then maybe a jumping on is your best bet?

https://biorobots.cwru.edu/projects/whegs/miniwhegs.html

Or you can have a grappling hook and a winch or something maybe? Except you'd need a way to fire it or swing it. Maybe you should just build a small foam ultralight plane and have it fly up the stairs.
 
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Those were some thoughts I had, too. If you make a robot that size which can climb human-scale stairs, the chances of it being able to do anything else are pretty low.

What about using 30cm lengths of stiff (but fairly thin) wire attached to little high-torque motors? If the wire "legs" had something on ends which could catch onto the tops of the stairs, perhaps you could swing the legs up, catch the stair riser, and pull the robot up somehow.

Or as dknguyen mentioned, a jumping bot might do it--controlling the jumps might be tricky though.


Torben
 
Do you know the covering on the stairs? If they were smooth wood, you could build a very light robot with large sticky tires (like 'sticky hand' material) and drive up them. You would want the bot geared low because in addition to a vertical climb, it will be harder to move sticky wheels than rubber.

If they were covered in carpet it might be possible to build velcro-like wheels and drive up them in the same way. Or even cover the tires in needles, which would be easy to insert and remove from the carpet, but would hold the weight of the bot vertically - like an exaggerated version of studded tires in snow.

Just some suggestions.

,Travis
 
Now this is a REAL challenge. As said earlier by the OP, the problem is in designing a robot, rather than one which climbs stairs.

1.5 cm height is a bit tricky. You have to get the actuator(Whtever you have it) inside that dimensions.
I would have gone for a mini - vacuum type walker - a pair for the ground motion, and a pair for the vertical motion. Two vacuum cups, size approx 1cm in radius ,connected on either ends of a 2 cm rod will oscillate to and fro. The cups has to be actuated by some simple pressure pads, one at a time (something like a solenoid - saw small ones inside an old electric typewriter..)
The to and fro motion of the cups as well as the pressure actuators can be improvised by the good old BEAM techniques, easily. The duplicate of this arrangement goes in the front of the bot, placed at 90 degrees to the ground - when the bot hits the wall, it climbs up. (Now dont ask me how the bot knows to switch from vertical climb to horizontal)

Just the wildest idea that came to me.. No, its not the beer!!!

after all, the problem statement was a bit wild too , isnt it ??


Cheers!!
 
Stair Climbing Robot for Wheel Chair prototype

Hi,

I am a new user to this forum. I am a student from polytechnics singapore. I am planning to build a stair-climbing robot for wheel chair prototype for my final year project.

I have no mechanical background so i dont know where to start. Normally, the programming to control the robot, the mechincal design, and their firmwares is also required rite? I dun have any idea ...Any one can help?

Thanks

 
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