ROBOTIC TAILS
“We looked to nature to see how
animals used their tails and how their
tails are structured,” said Ben-Tzvi.
“What we saw was a continuous
deformation and hyper-redundant
structure, so we’ve been inspired by
that, and the research we’ve done has
been largely establishing the field
of hyper-redundant robotic tails. We
are pioneering – exploring the field
and establishing it so that we have a
baseline for coupled dynamic analysis
of legged robots with tails onboard.”
The tail needs to be robust and
flexible, being able to perform a variety
of functions to justify incorporating
it into a complex, high-performance
mechanism.
“The idea is that by generating
different spatial motions of the tail, we
can apply moments and forces around
the base of the tail that will result in
moments and forces applied to the
robot, which will allow it to change
direction or maintain stability.
After modeling and establishing the
science behind the tails’ potential,
the team has come up with new
mathematical modeling approaches
that are widely applicable for flexible
structures beyond tails. Because of
their multiple mode shapes, the tails
allow for a greater range of freedom
than single degree of freedom
instruments.
“WE ARE
PIONEERING”
ROBOTIC TAIL - FULL VIEW
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