Infrared Localization: Designing a Novel End Effector for Pneumatic EMS Soft Robots

Overview

In 1995, Kobe, Japan grappled with a catastrophe as an intraplate fault triggered seismic activity measuring 6.9 on the Moment Magnitude Scale; the disaster claimed the lives of 6,434 individuals. Researchers have developed promising Pneumatic Robot prototypes that offer many benefits targeting these fatalities caused by building collapses post-seismic shock. For pneumatic soft robots to become widespread in disaster-relief scenarios, localization protocols are needed to guide these robots to humans and offer assistance autonomously. These protocols lack widespread development, but provide EMS operators an objective way to search for humans inside collapsed structures. Leveraging previous research on infrared localization arrays, the proposal utilizes bespoke 3D CAD models for an infrared (IR) sensor array and a protocol that compares the intensity across three IR intensity sensors to generate angular coordinates to triangulate signals emitted from humans. Using experimental designs, the prototype is composed of a two-axis plane that compares the intensity of three ultraviolet (UV) sensors and signals the robot to orient toward an emission source. Comparing the values of the generated angular coordinates against those of a measured environment produced an optimal working range when the comparison was statistically significant. The system's triangulation proves that the protocol offers promise for the development of high-precision IR localization sensors and the succession of soft robotics in EMS response.