dc.contributor.advisor |
Lalitharatne SWHMTD |
|
dc.contributor.advisor |
Chathuranga KVDS |
|
dc.contributor.advisor |
Jayasekara AGBP |
|
dc.contributor.author |
Wijayathunga ND |
|
dc.date.accessioned |
2020 |
|
dc.date.available |
2020 |
|
dc.date.issued |
2020 |
|
dc.identifier.citation |
Wijayathunga, N.D. (2020). Development of a multi-rotor aerial vehicle with top mounted counter balanced robotic manipulator [Master's theses, University of Moratuwa]. Institutional Repository University of Moratuwa. http://dl.lib.uom.lk/handle/123/21348 |
|
dc.identifier.uri |
http://dl.lib.uom.lk/handle/123/21348 |
|
dc.description.abstract |
Aerial manipulation has been a growing research area within the past few years. This research
area was associated with various application ideas and industries. Researchers implemented
different aerial vehicle designs and manipulation techniques to accomplish these tasks in
complex environmental conditions. Majority of conducted aerial manipulation research was
composed of aerial vehicle bottom-mounted manipulators. These kind of aerial manipulation
systems were not generally capable of achieving manipulator movements in an environment
above the propeller disc plane. A few research projects were carried out by researchers to
identify the performance of aerial vehicle top-mounted manipulators. Therefore, the
manipulator mechanical designing step plays a challenging role in keeping the dynamic
stability within the proper tolerances for manipulation systems. Center of Mass (COM)
position and inertia of an aerial manipulation system become variables with respect to an
inertial coordinate frame when a manipulator is attached to a multirotor. The manipulator,
environmental reaction forces and torques are transferred on to the aerial vehicle as the system
interacts with the external environment. Researchers had conducted a limited number of aerial
manipulator system related projects with top-mounted manipulators which were capable of
inspecting both vertical and overhead structures. The set of aerial manipulator systems capable
of inspecting overhead structures are a small subset of the universal set of multirotor mounted
manipulator projects. The literature suggests COM of an aerial manipulator system need to be
placed in the propeller disc plane and closer to the central axis of a multirotor to achieve a
better dynamic performance of that system. If a designer attaches manipulator on the top or
bottom surface of a multirotor, the COM position moves vertically up or down from the
propeller disc plane respectively. Generally, aerial vehicle top-mounted manipulators have
generated more dynamic instabilities compared to manipulators mounted on the underside of
multirotors.
This thesis introduces a 2 Degrees of Freedom (DOF) serial link planar manipulator which has
been mounted on top of a hexacopter by the rigid manipulator base. The research focused on
inspection purposes of tall structures that human reach may be costly or vulnerable to physical
injuries. The developed system included a novel serial link manipulator design and a force
sensor as the end effector of the manipulator. This end-effector sensor would be able to identify
the contact with surfaces of high-rise buildings or structures. The manipulator consisted of a
separate controller apart from the flight controller. When this manipulator achieved different
poses in its planar workspace, COM position of the system varied as a result. Therefore, a
novel controller strategy was developed by the author in the research to compensate for the
system attitude variations. Variation of the COM position caused attitude fluctuations. The
thesis proposes a specifically designed manipulator mechanical design configuration to reduce
the inherent COM position variation. Another concept was introduced by the author to
counterbalance the COM position variation by synchronizing the motions of the system
battery. A variable gain Proportional (P) controller, followed by a Proportional Integral
Derivative (PID) controller was presented in the research to maintain the aerial manipulator
system attitude. This research introduces novel concepts of designing, disturbance
compensation and controlling of the aerial vehicle top-mounted manipulation systems.
Theoretical simulations showed the COM, inertia, joint torque, disturbance torque variations
of the manipulator. Experiments were carried out by the author considering the manipulator
separately and the overall system in-flight to identify the performance of the developed system. |
en_US |
dc.language.iso |
en |
en_US |
dc.subject |
AERIAL MANIPULATION |
en_US |
dc.subject |
PID CONTROL |
en_US |
dc.subject |
SERIAL MANIPULATOR |
en_US |
dc.subject |
NONDESTRUCTIVE INSPECTION |
en_US |
dc.subject |
DYNAMICS MODELLING |
en_US |
dc.subject |
MECHANICAL ENGINEERING – Dissertation |
en_US |
dc.title |
Development of a multi-rotor aerial vehicle with top mounted counter balanced robotic manipulator |
en_US |
dc.type |
Thesis-Abstract |
en_US |
dc.identifier.faculty |
Engineering |
en_US |
dc.identifier.degree |
MSc In Mechanical Engineering by research |
en_US |
dc.identifier.department |
Department of Mechanical Engineering |
en_US |
dc.date.accept |
2020 |
|
dc.identifier.accno |
TH4852 |
en_US |