From Dusty Dreams to Lunar Leaps: A Next-Gen Robot Arm for Moon Missions

Team Challengers:

Published March 28, 2024

Lunar Arm: Kinematic Control design and Analysis

Use genuine moon data to train the AI of the lunar robot! It uses ROS2 to prepare and avoid obstacles for future space exploration.

IntermediateWork in progressOver 25 days1,065

Lunar Arm: Kinematic Control design and Analysis

Things used in this project

Hardware components

Arduino UNO

UDOO Camera Module

Software apps and online services

MATLAB

RoboDK

keyshot

Hand tools and fabrication machines

Drill / Driver, Cordless

Hot glue gun (generic)

Soldering Station, 110 V

Solder Wire, Lead Free

Story

From Dusty Dreams to Lunar Leaps: A Next-Gen Robot Arm for Moon Missions

We carefully developed this marvel with state-of-the-art tools because we were driven by a burning desire to discover the secrets of the moon. Solidworks provided shape to our idea, and Solidworks Simulations and Ansys R3 put it through its paces. What was the outcome? The simulation revealed that there was no significant deformation at temperatures between -126°C and +103°C, which are similar to those on the moon. To achieve this result, we read a lot of existing research papers on material sciences to choose the right material. Not only that, but we were also able to create structures so that the chosen material was not only strong but also able to lift, with the robotic arm weighing only 4 kg and carrying an impressive 9 kg payload on the moon.

Render of the Robotic ARM (cobot inspired universal Axis Robotic Arm having 5 DEGREES OF Freedom)

RoboDK Simulation of Forward and Inverse kinematics having rescricted motion

It wasn't an easy road, though. An advanced AI was required to plan the robot's complex maneuvers across the lunar surface. This is where MATLAB was useful. We developed a reliable communication interface with ROS2 that enabled us to train an AI on actual lunar data. This artificial intelligence genius makes use of a 3D spatial recognition system to navigate the lunar surface with skill. PRM (probabilistic road mapping) creates a smooth path by interpolating accessible spots and sampling them sequentially.

PRM algorithm for Spacial recognition (spikes on the graph means obstacle probablity around the Robotic arm workspace)

We're not scared even though interplanetary communication is still a barrier. We think thorough ground surveys with different industry experts hold the key. Through a thorough investigation of Earth-based ecosystems, we will collect priceless information to close the communication gap and enable smooth control of robots from Earth.

Working Prototypes 3 DOF articulated:

Schematics

Code

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<!-- This URDF was automatically created by SolidWorks to URDF Exporter! Originally created by Stephen Brawner (brawner@gmail.com) 
     Commit Version: 1.6.0-4-g7f85cfe  Build Version: 1.6.7995.38578
     For more information, please see http://wiki.ros.org/sw_urdf_exporter -->
<robot
  name="Assem1">
  <link
    name="base_link">
    <inertial>
      <origin
        xyz="-0.00251446002835114 -0.00910274977624806 0.00930455495699778"
        rpy="0 0 0" ></origin>
      <mass
        value="5.05654866776462" ></mass>
      <inertia
        ixx="0.416700428656306"
        ixy="-4.32978610489403E-20"
        ixz="-2.02384405530627E-17"
        iyy="0.833358780233827"
        iyz="-1.22334969149059E-19"
        izz="0.416700428656306" ></inertia>
    </inertial>
    <visual>
      <origin
        xyz="0 0 0"
        rpy="0 0 0" ></origin>
      <geometry>
        <mesh
          filename="package://Assem1/meshes/base_link.STL" ></mesh>
      </geometry>
      <material
        name="">
        <color
          rgba="0.792156862745098 0.819607843137255 0.933333333333333 1" />
      </material>
    </visual>
    <collision>
      <origin
        xyz="0 0 0"
        rpy="0 0 0" ></origin>
      <geometry>
        <mesh
          filename="package://Assem1/meshes/base_link.STL" ></mesh>
      </geometry>
    </collision>
  </link>
  <link
    name="base upper">
    <inertial>
      <origin
        xyz="-0.0248799781249181 0.0595719847655025 -9.22001076701651E-08"
        rpy="0 0 0" ></origin>
      <mass
        value="0.17975206887673" ></mass>
      <inertia
        ixx="0.000150393233089808"
        ixy="1.61490457448352E-06"
        ixz="1.22577960971961E-10"
        iyy="0.000110782668404665"
        iyz="-1.27707816521107E-11"
        izz="0.000113874316246099" ></inertia>
    </inertial>
    <visual>
      <origin
        xyz="0 0 0"
        rpy="0 0 0" ></origin>
      <geometry>
        <mesh
          filename="package://Assem1/meshes/base upper.STL" ></mesh>
      </geometry>
      <material
        name="">
        <color
          rgba="0.792156862745098 0.819607843137255 0.933333333333333 1" />
      </material>
    </visual>
    <collision>
      <origin
        xyz="0 0 0"
        rpy="0 0 0" ></origin>
      <geometry>
        <mesh
          filename="package://Assem1/meshes/base upper.STL" ></mesh>
      </geometry>
    </collision>
  </link>
  <joint
    name="rotating1"
    type="revolute">
    <origin
      xyz="-0.0025145 -0.0093046 0.013257"
      rpy="1.5708 0 3.1416" ></origin>
    <parent
      link="base_link" ></parent>
    <child
      link="base upper" ></child>
    <axis
      xyz="0 1 0" ></axis>
    <limit
      lower="0"
      upper="0"
      effort="0"
      velocity="0" ></limit>
  </joint>
  <link
    name="upper line">
    <inertial>
      <origin
        xyz="1.90819582357449E-16 0.0415003031125783 -0.175"
        rpy="0 0 0" ></origin>
      <mass
        value="1.24856818796039" ></mass>
      <inertia
        ixx="0.0272444827700386"
        ixy="9.67108026478024E-20"
        ixz="2.71050543121376E-17"
        iyy="0.0272505671890494"
        iyz="-2.35087387490933E-18"
        izz="0.000875719560286572" ></inertia>
    </inertial>
    <visual>
      <origin
        xyz="0 0 0"
        rpy="0 0 0" ></origin>
      <geometry>
        <mesh
          filename="package://Assem1/meshes/upper line.STL" ></mesh>
      </geometry>
      <material
        name="">
        <color
          rgba="0.792156862745098 0.819607843137255 0.933333333333333 1" />
      </material>
    </visual>
    <collision>
      <origin
        xyz="0 0 0"
        rpy="0 0 0" ></origin>
      <geometry>
        <mesh
          filename="package://Assem1/meshes/upper line.STL" ></mesh>
      </geometry>
    </collision>
  </link>
  <joint
    name="rotating2"
    type="revolute">
    <origin
      xyz="0.04 0.06 0"
      rpy="0 1.2689 -1.5708" ></origin>
    <parent
      link="base upper" ></parent>
    <child
      link="upper line" ></child>
    <axis
      xyz="0 1 0" ></axis>
    <limit
      lower="0"
      upper="0"
      effort="0"
      velocity="0" ></limit>
  </joint>
  <link
    name="upper holder">
    <inertial>
      <origin
        xyz="-0.00249578339288004 0.0157997485505612 0.0776404779597654"
        rpy="0 0 0" ></origin>
      <mass
        value="0.600752275490035" ></mass>
      <inertia
        ixx="0.0043317816510292"
        ixy="-8.69583879383647E-06"
        ixz="0.000120259918899327"
        iyy="0.00363079250672205"
        iyz="0.000270515895786707"
        izz="0.00140856272750615" ></inertia>
    </inertial>
    <visual>
      <origin
        xyz="0 0 0"
        rpy="0 0 0" ></origin>
      <geometry>
        <mesh
          filename="package://Assem1/meshes/upper holder.STL" ></mesh>
      </geometry>
      <material
        name="">
        <color
          rgba="0.792156862745098 0.819607843137255 0.933333333333333 1" />
      </material>
    </visual>
    <collision>
      <origin
        xyz="0 0 0"
        rpy="0 0 0" ></origin>
      <geometry>
        <mesh
          filename="package://Assem1/meshes/upper holder.STL" ></mesh>
      </geometry>
    </collision>
  </link>
  <joint
    name="rotating3"
    type="revolute">
    <origin
      xyz="0 0 -0.35"
      rpy="-3.1416 -0.45671 0" ></origin>
    <parent
      link="upper line" ></parent>
    <child
      link="upper holder" ></child>
    <axis
      xyz="0 1 0" ></axis>
    <limit
      lower="0"
      upper="0"
      effort="0"
      velocity="0" ></limit>
  </joint>
  <link
    name="holder">
    <inertial>
      <origin
        xyz="0.0489702908769923 0.00950000000000006 -1.11022302462516E-16"
        rpy="0 0 0" ></origin>
      <mass
        value="0.88615781631058" ></mass>
      <inertia
        ixx="0.000713451704325079"
        ixy="-3.77912275790223E-19"
        ixz="1.84314369322536E-18"
        iyy="0.00274635153308726"
        iyz="-3.16488795512668E-21"
        izz="0.00266974086119314" ></inertia>
    </inertial>
    <visual>
      <origin
        xyz="0 0 0"
        rpy="0 0 0" ></origin>
      <geometry>
        <mesh
          filename="package://Assem1/meshes/holder.STL" ></mesh>
      </geometry>
      <material
        name="">
        <color
          rgba="0.792156862745098 0.819607843137255 0.933333333333333 1" />
      </material>
    </visual>
    <collision>
      <origin
        xyz="0 0 0"
        rpy="0 0 0" ></origin>
      <geometry>
        <mesh
          filename="package://Assem1/meshes/holder.STL" ></mesh>
      </geometry>
    </collision>
  </link>
  <joint
    name="gripper"
    type="fixed">
    <origin
      xyz="0 0 0.15"
      rpy="0 -0.41953 0" ></origin>
    <parent
      link="upper holder" ></parent>
    <child
      link="holder" ></child>
    <axis
      xyz="0 0 0" ></axis>
  </joint>
</robot>

import os
from launch_ros.actions import Node
from launch import LaunchDescription
from launch.substitutions import Command
from launch.actions import ExecuteProcess
from ament_index_python.packages import get_package_share_directory


def generate_launch_description():
    # robot model to option m1013 or a0912

    robot_model = 'a0912'
    # robot_model = 'm1013'

    xacro_file = get_package_share_directory('my_doosan_pkg') + '/description' + '/xacro/' + robot_model + '.urdf.xacro'

    # Robot State Publisher
    robot_state_publisher = Node(package='robot_state_publisher',
                                 executable='robot_state_publisher',
                                 name='robot_state_publisher',
                                 output='both',
                                 parameters=[{'robot_description': Command(['xacro', ' ', xacro_file])
                                              }])

    # Spawn the robot in Gazebo
    spawn_entity_robot = Node(package='gazebo_ros',
                              executable='spawn_entity.py',
                              arguments=['-entity', 'my_doosan_robot', '-topic', 'robot_description'],
                              output='screen')

    # Start Gazebo with my empty world
    world_file_name = 'my_empty_world.world'
    world = os.path.join(get_package_share_directory('my_doosan_pkg'), 'worlds', world_file_name)
    gazebo_node = ExecuteProcess(cmd=['gazebo', '--verbose', world, '-s', 'libgazebo_ros_factory.so'], output='screen')

    return LaunchDescription([robot_state_publisher, spawn_entity_robot, gazebo_node])

Credits

K Anup Pai

1 project • 1 follower

Lunar Arm: Kinematic Control design and Analysis