Sistema Automatizado de Comando de Cabo Umbilical para Navegação de Robôs Móveis

Abstract

The use of mobile robots is increasing in various industrial and scientific applications, with emphasis on monitoring areas with safety risks, such as confined spaces or restricted access areas. In these scenarios, these robots are often teleoperated from a remote base, making communication a critical requirement. Wireless communication, although practical, can suffer from interference and signal quality loss as distance increases, with a possible solution being a tether cable. However, tethered robots present challenges such as the risk of the cable becoming entangled with the robot’s locomotion system and drag due to friction. This article proposes an automated system capable of controlling the release and retraction of a tether cable to keep it taut and in harmony with a mobile robot’s movements and estimate the distance traveled. The article presents the design and implementation of the automated system and preliminary tests with the EspeleoRobot in laboratory environments. The results show that the proposed system reduces the number of workers needed in field operations, as well as providing odometry information that can contribute to this robot’s autonomous localization and navigation system.