JiAo: A Versatile Snake Robot with Elliptical Wheels for Multimodal Locomotion
Zizhu Zhao, Jianming Wang, Michael Albert Sumantri, Chenghui Zhang, Sihan Feng, Xuan Xiao, Shiyong Meng
Abstract
This paper presents a novel snake robot, JiAo, equipped with elliptical wheels that enable both wheeled and body-based locomotion. First, the design of each module of the snake robot is described, which consists of the body link and the transmission system of the elliptical wheels. Second, distinct control systems for wheeled and body-based locomotion are proposed. Finally, the prototype has been successfully developed and various experiments have been conducted, including crossing grasslands, crossing gaps, climbing slopes, navigating pipelines and climbing cylinders. In conclusion, JiAo demonstrates its versatility by effectively performing a wide range of tasks in various challenging scenarios.
BibTeX
@inproceedings{iros2025_jiaoaversatilesn,
title = {JiAo: A Versatile Snake Robot with Elliptical Wheels for Multimodal Locomotion},
author = {Zizhu Zhao and Jianming Wang and Michael Albert Sumantri and Chenghui Zhang and Sihan Feng and Xuan Xiao and Shiyong Meng},
booktitle = {IROS 2025},
year = {2025}
}