SMORS: A soft multirotor UAV for multimodal locomotion and robust interaction

TL;DR

SMORS is a novel soft multirotor UAV that combines soft robotic arms with full actuation for multimodal locomotion and robust interaction, demonstrated through modeling, control, and simulation showing energy efficiency.

Contribution

This work introduces the first fully actuated soft multirotor UAV with multimodal locomotion capabilities, bridging soft robotics and aerial robotics.

Findings

Robust multimodal locomotion demonstrated in simulations.

Energy efficiency surpasses traditional hexarotors.

Full actuation enables versatile interaction and maneuvering.

Abstract

We present SMORS, the first Soft fully actuated MultirOtoR System for multimodal locomotion. Unlike conventional hexarotors, SMORS is equipped with three rigid and three continuously soft arms, with each arm hosting a propeller. We create a bridge between the fields of soft and aerial robotics by mechanically coupling the actuation of a fully actuated flying platform with the actuation of a soft robotic manipulator. Each rotor is slightly tilted, allowing for full actuation of the platform. The soft components combined with the platform's full actuation allow for a robust interaction, in the form of efficient multimodal locomotion. In this work, we present the dynamical model of the platform, derive a closed-loop control, and present simulation results fortifying the robustness of the platform under a jumping-flying maneuver. We demonstrate in simulations that our multimodal locomotion approach can be more energy-efficient than the flight with a hexarotor.