Related papers: Sharing the Load: Autonomous Multi-Rover Cargo Tra…
Due to the limitation of the drone's load capacity, various specific tasks need to be accomplished by multiple drones in collaboration. In some transportation tasks, two drones are required to lift the load together, which brings even more…
The rapid growth of cislunar activities, including lunar landings, the Lunar Gateway, and in-space refueling stations, requires advances in cost-efficient trajectory design and reliable integration of navigation and remote sensing.…
We propose a combined method for the collaborative transportation of a suspended payload by a team of rotorcraft. A recent distance-based formation-motion control algorithm based on assigning distance disagreements among robots generates…
This paper presents a learning-based tracking control framework for cooperative transport of a rigid payload by multiple aerial manipulators under rigid grasp constraints. A unified geometric model is developed, yielding a coupled…
In this work, we address traffic management of multiple payload transport systems comprising of non-holonomic robots. We consider loosely coupled rigid robot formations carrying a payload from one place to another. Each payload transport…
Multi-object transport using multi-robot systems has the potential for diverse practical applications such as delivery services owing to its efficient individual and scalable cooperative transport. However, allocating transportation tasks…
In this paper, we present the development of 4-DOF robot limbs, which we call Moonbots, designed to connect in various configurations with each other and wheel modules, enabling adaptation to different environments and tasks. These modular…
We present a simulation framework for lunar construction work involving multiple autonomous machines. The framework supports modelling of construction scenarios and autonomy solutions, execution of the scenarios in simulation, and analysis…
Machine learning (ML) plays a crucial role in assessing traversability for autonomous rover operations on deformable terrains but suffers from inevitable prediction errors. Especially for heterogeneous terrains where the geological features…
Autonomous regolith excavation is a cornerstone of in-situ resource utilization for a sustained human presence beyond Earth. However, this task is fundamentally hindered by the complex interaction dynamics of granular media and the…
Truck platooning is a promising technology that enables trucks to travel in formations with small inter-vehicle distances for improved aerodynamics and fuel economy. The real-world transportation system includes a vast number of trucks…
Robots often use feature-based image tracking to identify their position in their surrounding environment; however, feature-based image tracking is prone to errors in low-textured and poorly lit environments. Specifically, we investigate a…
While Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) are increasingly deployed in several missions, their inability of reliable and consistent autonomous landing poses a major setback for deploying such systems truly autonomously. In this paper we present…
Multi-rotor UAVs suffer from a restricted range and flight duration due to limited battery capacity. Autonomous landing on a 2D moving platform offers the possibility to replenish batteries and offload data, thus increasing the utility of…
We consider task allocation for multi-object transport using a multi-robot system, in which each robot selects one object among multiple objects with different and unknown weights. The existing centralized methods assume the number of…
Kick-starting the space economy requires identification of critical resources that can lower the cost of space transport, sustain logistic bases and communication relay networks between major nodes in the network. One important challenge…
This paper presents a novel 3D myopic coverage path planning algorithm for lunar micro-rovers that can explore unknown environments with limited sensing and computational capabilities. The algorithm expands upon traditional non-graph path…
Existing multirotor-based cargo transportation does not maintain a constant cargo attitude due to underactuation; however, fragile payloads may require a consistent posture. The conventional method is also cumbersome when loading cargo, and…
Today AUVs operation still remains restricted to very particular tasks with low real autonomy due to battery restrictions. Efficient motion planning and mission scheduling are principle requirement toward advance autonomy and facilitate the…
In this work, we present an algorithm for robot replacement to increase the operational time of a multi-robot payload transport system. Our system comprises a group of nonholonomic wheeled mobile robots traversing on a known trajectory. We…