Versatile Perching Using a Passive Mechanism With Under Actuated Fingers for Multirotor AAV

Abstract

This research proposes a passively driven perching mechanism designed to land not only on flat surface but also on various shaped objects, such as bar, plate, and spherical object, without the use of additional actuators. The perching mechanism consists of three under actuated fingers, and utilizes two passive drive mechanisms: one for landing without bending the fingers but by pinching, and another for grasping by bending the fingers to land. As a result, a lightweight apparatus capable of landing on various objects without the need for additional CPUs, motors, or batteries for driving and controlling was achieved. The gripping force generated by this mechanism was calculated, and it was found that the gripping force varied depending on the size of the object. Finally, the actual forces exerted by the fingers during landing on objects like safety cones, boards, or pipes were measured and compared with theoretical values.