CU Rover Team
CU Rover Team
The arm system of the rover provides critical functionality for the rover to successfully accomplish the Extreme Retrieval and Delivery, and Equipment Servicing missions featured in the University Rover Challenge.
The base of the mechanical arm is the framework for the entire system-- using a series of pulleys and linear actuators, the base must achieve a minimum of 3 degrees of freedom. With the need to carry a load of several kilograms and extend to a near horizontal orientation, the base of the arm must be robust enough to survive not only the task at hand, but the hart conditions of the desert.
The end effector (gripper) is arguably the most important element of the arm system. It provides an additional two degrees of freedom for the system, and allows for our rover to grab objects and perform intricate tasks.
To make the arm function as a single, cohesive unit that is easy to operate, a precise feedback control system is required to drive the attached motors and linear actuators. It must be capable of distributing both power and desired inputs to the right places at the right time.
The mechanical aspect of the arm is designed in SolidWorks, one of the leading programs used for example by Northrop Grumman and NASA.
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This middleware program that is becoming more and more popular in industry. It provides a Python or C++ software framework that uses hardware abstraction as well as low level control.
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