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A novel explosion-proof walking system: Twin dual-motor drive tracked units for coal mine rescue robots

  • Mechanical Engineering, Control Science and Information Engineering
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Abstract

A new explosion-proof walking system was designed for the coal mine rescue robot (CMRR) by optimizing the mechanical structure and control algorithm. The mechanical structure innovation lies mainly in the dual-motor drive tracked unit used, which showed high dynamic performance compared with the conventional tracked unit. The control algorithm, developed based on decision trees and neural networking, facilitates autonomous switching between “Velocity-driven Mode” and “Torquedriven Mode”. To verify the feasibility and effectiveness of the control strategy, we built a self-designed test platform and used it to debug the control program; we then made a robot prototype and conducted further experiments on single-step, ramp, and rubble terrains. The results show that the proposed walking system has excellent dynamic performance and the control strategy is very efficient, suggesting that a robot with this type of explosion-proof walking system can be successfully applied in Chinese coal mines.

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Correspondence to Hua Zhu  (朱华).

Additional information

Foundation item: Project(2012AA041504) supported by the National High-Tech Research and Development Program of China; Project(KYLX15_1418) supported by the 2015 Annual General University Graduate Research and Innovation Program of Jiangsu Province, China; Project supported by the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions (PAPD), China

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Li, Yt., Zhu, H., Li, Mg. et al. A novel explosion-proof walking system: Twin dual-motor drive tracked units for coal mine rescue robots. J. Cent. South Univ. 23, 2570–2577 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11771-016-3318-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11771-016-3318-3

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