A Multi-modal Robot for Ground and Aerial Locomotion

This thesis describes the design and testing of a quadcopter that capable of both driving and flying. This was achieved by mounting quadcopter motors and propellers to the center of each of the robot's four wheels. The wheels are then capable of changing orientation in order to allow the robot to either drive or fly. Each of these wheels contains a gearing and bearing system that decouples the rotation of the wheels from the rotation of the propellers and also houses the system's landing gear. The prototype described in this thesis is capable of driving on flat surfaces as well as vertical take-off and landing. Further improvements to the system would be required in order for it to perform longer flights, complex aerial maneuvers, drive on uneven surfaces, or carry additional payloads.

Name thesis:degree_name

Bachelor

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical Engineering

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2019

Author dc:creator

• Winston, Crystal(Crystal E.)

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Douglas Hart.

• Mechanical Engineering.

Statement dc:rights

• MIT theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed, downloaded, or printed from this source but further reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/123246

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/123246