288 research outputs found
On the Existence of Static Equilibria of a Cable-Suspended Load with Non-stopping Flying Carriers
This work answers positively the question whether non-stop flights are possible for maintaining constant the pose of cable-suspended objects. Such a counterintuitive answer paves the way for a paradigm shift where energetically efficient fixed-wing flying carriers can replace the inefficient multirotor carriers that have been used so far in precise cooperative cable-suspended aerial manipulation.First, we show that one or two flying carriers alone cannot perform non-stop flights while maintaining a constant pose of the suspended object. Instead, we prove that three flying carriers can achieve this task provided that the orientation of the load at the equilibrium is such that the components of the cable forces that balance the external force (typically gravity) do not belong to the plane of the cable anchoring points on the load. Numerical tests are presented in support of the analytical results
Differential Flatness and Manipulation of Elasto-flexible Cables Carried by Aerial Robots in a Possibly Viscous Environment
Modelling, Analysis and Control of OmniMorph: an Omnidirectional Morphing Multi-rotor UAV
This paper introduces for the first time the design, modelling, and control
of a novel morphing multi-rotor Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) that we call the
OmniMorph. The morphing ability allows the selection of the configuration that
optimizes energy consumption while ensuring the needed maneuverability for the
required task. The most energy-efficient uni-directional thrust (UDT)
configuration can be used, e.g., during standard point-to-point displacements.
Fully-actuated (FA) and omnidirectional (OD) configurations can be instead used
for full pose tracking, such as, e.g., constant attitude horizontal motions and
full rotations on the spot, and for full wrench 6D interaction control and 6D
disturbance rejection. Morphing is obtained using a single servomotor, allowing
possible minimization of weight, costs, and maintenance complexity. The
actuation properties are studied, and an optimal controller that compromises
between performance and control effort is proposed and validated in realistic
simulations
Equilibria, Stability, and Sensitivity for the Aerial Suspended Beam Robotic System subject to Parameter Uncertainty
This work studies how parametric uncertainties affect the cooperative
manipulation of a cable-suspended beam-shaped load by means of two aerial
robots not explicitly communicating with each other. In particular, the work
sheds light on the impact of the uncertain knowledge of the model parameters
available to an established communication-less force-based controller. First,
we find the closed-loop equilibrium configurations in the presence of the
aforementioned uncertainties, and then we study their stability. Hence, we show
the fundamental role played in the robustness of the load attitude control by
the internal force induced in the manipulated object by non-vertical cables.
Furthermore, we formally study the sensitivity of the attitude error to such
parametric variations, and we provide a method to act on the load position
error in the presence of the uncertainties. Eventually, we validate the results
through an extensive set of numerical tests in a realistic simulation
environment including underactuated aerial vehicles and sagging-prone cables,
and through hardware experiments
An Experimentally Validated Model of the Propeller Force Accounting for Cross Influences on Multi-Rotor Aerial Systems
In this paper, we propose a model for the thrust coefficient of propellers that can take into account cross-influence between adjacent propellers. The aerodynamic interaction between propellers in multirotor aerial vehicles reduces the thrust they can produce. The influence between propellers depends on their relative positioning and orientation, which are taken into account by the proposed model. It is validated on measurements collected by a force sensor mounted on a propeller for different configurations of the adjacent propellers in a support structure. In this work, we focus on configurations with small relative orientations. Results show that the proposed model outperforms the traditional constant model in terms of thrust prediction on the data we collected, and it performs better than other models with fewer parameters, being the only one with less than 10% maximum percentage error
Modelling, Analysis, and Control of OmniMorph: an Omnidirectional Morphing Multi-rotor UAV
This paper introduces for the first time the design, modelling, and control of a novel morphing multi-rotor Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) that we call the OmniMorph. The morphing ability allows the selection of the configuration that optimizes energy consumption while ensuring the needed maneuverability for the required task. The most energy-efficient uni-directional thrust (UDT) configuration can be used, e.g., during standard point-to-point displacements. Fully-actuated (FA) and omnidirectional (OD) configurations can be instead used for full pose tracking, such as, e.g., constant attitude horizontal motions and full rotations on the spot, and for full wrench 6D interaction control and 6D disturbance rejection. Morphing is obtained using a single servomotor, allowing possible minimization of weight, costs, and maintenance complexity. The actuation properties are studied, and an optimal controller that compromises between performance and control effort is proposed and validated in realistic simulations. Preliminary tests on the prototype are presented to assess the propellers’ mutual aerodynamic interference.</p
Towards Instance Segmentation-Based Litter Collection with Multi-Rotor Aerial Vehicle
This paper presents a novel aerial robotics application of instance segmentation-based floating litter collection with a multi-rotor aerial vehicle (MRAV). In the scope of the paper, we present a review of the available datasets for litter detection and segmentation. The reviewed datasets are used to train a Mask-RCNN neural network for instance segmentation. The neural network is off-board deployed on an edge computing device and used for litter position estimation. Based on the estimated litter position, we plan a path based on a quadratic Bezier curve for the litter pickup. We compare different trajectory generation methods for the object pickup. The system is verified in a laboratory environment. Eventually, we present practical considerations and improvements necessary to enable autonomous litter collection with MRAV
Predicting hospital readmissions in older patients with heart failure with advanced bioinformatics tools: focus on the role of vulnerability and frailty
Short-term effects produced by rapid maxillary expansion and facemask therapy in Class III patients with different vertical skeletal relationships
Effects of NSAIDs on the Release of Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide and Prostaglandin E2 from Rat Trigeminal Ganglia
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are frequently used to treat migraine, but the mechanisms of their effects in this pathology are not fully elucidated. The trigeminal ganglia and calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) have been implicated in the pathophysiology of migraine. The release of CGRP and prostaglandin E 2 (PGE 2 ) from freshly isolated rat trigeminal ganglia was evaluated after oral administration of nimesulide, etoricoxib, and ketoprofen, NSAIDs with different pharmacological features. Thirty minutes after oral administration, nimesulide, 10 mg/Kg, decreased the GCRP release induced by an inflammatory soup, while the other NSAIDs were ineffective at this point in time. Two hours after oral nimesulide (5 and 10 mg/Kg) and ketoprofen (10 mg/Kg), but not of etoricoxib, a significant decrease in the CGRP release was observed. All drugs reduced PGE 2 , although with some differences in timing and doses, and the action on CGRP does not seem to be related to PGE 2 inhibition. The reduction of CGRP release from rat trigeminal ganglia after nimesulide and ketoprofen may help to explain the mechanism of action of NSAIDs in migraine. Since at 30 minutes only nimesulide was effective in reducing CGRP release, these results suggest that this NSAID may exert a particularly rapid effect in patients with migraine
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