October 20, 2022

In contrast to traditional industrial and consumer robots, field robotics systems must operate in outdoor, unstructured and dynamic environments, such as construction worksites, mines, and farm fields, as well as busy urban centers. Field robotics systems are typically larger and more ruggedized than systems designed for indoor use, and must be able to withstand challenging working conditions. To do so, field systems must incorporate and utilize motion control and actuation technologies that are up to the task.

In this panel session, the unique motion control requirements for field systems will be reviewed, along with the characteristics and capabilities of the latest motion control products and technologies for field robotics systems. Case studies and product examples will be used to highlight salient points. Topics include:
• Field Robotics Motion Control Requirements
• Ruggedized Motion Control Products and Technologies
• Robotic Motion Control Trends for Field Systems
• Applications and Vertical Markets

For decades, medium and large size off-road equipment engineering and manufacturing companies, and more recently venture investors, have applied large amounts of resources to develop functional off-road highly automated and autonomous machines in field like agriculture, construction, mining, turf. Yet there are few examples of large-scale commercial success of autonomous vehicles (mining being a notable exception).
Product liability is a key obstacle to this commercial success, due mostly to the absence of a local operator, who traditionally held much of the responsibility. Formalizing liability exposure among the various actors (equipment owner, manufacturer, distribution, insurance, etc.) in the absence of a local operator can be managed through the necessary level of safety. Also, straight adoption of on-road approaches may drive unneeded complexity and cost, as on-road methods and standards are geared towards a fundamentally different risk profile. In addition, off-road solutions on lower sales volumes become impractical. But volume issues can be partially offset by leveraging automotive hardware and software solutions that are carefully tailored.

This presentation examines several dimensions of attaining product safety goals in a way to manage liability and reduce business risk. These dimensions include the tailoring of functional safety standards to objectively characterized risks present in off-road applications, integrating vehicle security as a necessary element of product safety, adoption of Safety Of The Intended Function (SOTIF) standards, and other elements of a verifiable and documented safety case.

While there are numerous opportunities for task automation in unstructured environments, physically traversing these settings can be challenging. Sometimes locomotion difficulties can be solved simply, but in other cases, challenges may require an entire design process dedicated to solving the problem of locomotion.

Questions to ask during the design process include: What is the terrain or surface to be traversed? Are there hazards such as water, mud, or even electromagnetic or radioactive fields? How many degrees of freedom are necessary for navigation and task completion? What load must the locomotion system carry? What level of positional accuracy is needed? With these considerations, and many more in mind, it is important to understand various locomotion methods used for automating tasks in unstructured environments as opposed to simply sticking with a potentially limiting method because it is the known and comfortable option.

Over the years, Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) has utilized numerous locomotion methods in a variety of unstructured environments. In this presentation, SwRI’s Branson Brockschmidt will present case studies for several means of locomotion to describe what the design process is like and how a given method can be decided upon. The case studies presented include omni-directional wheels to drive on aircraft depot tarmacs, treads for navigating uneven metal floors in a nuclear waste storage tank, an eight-armed inspection system to climb power line insulators, a tracked gantry for traversing ship ballast tanks, a foam vacuum roller to climb a concrete dam, and drones for remote inspection.