Terrestrial Demonstrator
The Guidelines also requested a full case study focusing on a terrestrial scenario of particular pertinence in which the technologies have developed & have matured in for the Space exploration demonstrator could have been exploited and spun-in to terrestrial robotics applications. CoRob-X went well beyond this requirement by developing a full-blown demonstrator for a terrestrial use-case in the mining industry. In this use-case, a wheeled rover (REU-4) cooperated with an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) (REU-5) assessing the status of a mine shaft after a blast.
This is a frequent task (explosives are used on a daily basis to dig mine shafts) that poses a significant risk to human workers, due to poisonous gases, unstable walls, and unexploded ordinance hidden under debris. The selected use-case was of high relevance for the mining industry. However, the dual-robot CoRob-X ADRES demonstrated here could have been used in a number of other terrestrial applications, including search and rescue (SAR), inspection & maintenance, or agricultural robotics.
Terrestrial Exploitation Plan
As one representative for a number of possible spin-out use-cases to terrestrial applications, a scenario set in the mining industry will be evaluated. Safe operations and reduction of numbers of accidents, especially with human casualties was an important goal for the mining industry. Mining is increasingly migrating underground as surface deposits are exhausted. The underground environment is challenging due to high rock stress, high temperatures, poor communications with the surface, restricted access and lack of satellite positioning systems.
Terrestrial Exploitation Demonstrator
Since the requirements for hardware in terrestrial mining were very different from the requirements for planetary exploration (among others, neither the mass nor the size of the robots are critical parameters), the field tests were focussed on the validation of CoRob-X software modules. The robotic hardware was comprised a four-wheeled rover as the mother rover, and an UAV as the scout robot (both provided by GMV).
For the terrestrial rover platform, GMV relyed on its Foxizirc Rover. The Foxizirc rover was currently being upgraded for a use case aimed to decommissioning in nuclear facilities in the frame of the ADE Project (OG10). The scout UAV was based on the Tarot 680 Pro platform, already available at GMV robotics lab. It was a hexacopter with an approximate payload of 2.5 kg and retractable landing gear. The system was tested at the Santa Barbara’s Foundation facilities located in Leon (Spain).
The demonstration scenario was addressed the inspection of a mining tunnel after the use of explosives. This was a very common and frequent task (blasts are performed daily in mining operations) and involved inspection of the tunnel for structural safety and unexploded explosives. For mining companies, it was very relevant to be able to achieve this task without putting human crews in danger.
The CoRob-X mother rover traversed the mine tunnel to the point in which obstacles were detected that prevent its further progress. From that point on, the UAV started its flight into the blast area, building a local DEM used its on-board sensors. The CRE-X module developed in CoRob-X were used in both REUs (rover and UAV).
Both systems profited from each other: the mother rover enabled the team to get into the mine safely up to the point affected by the blast, without need for human intervention. The UAV scout could explore the blast area safely and efficiently.
The TRL for the terrestrial demonstrator at system level was 8. The demonstrator HW was tested with the same HW and the same SW used in a product version, and was tested under realistic conditions (we plan to perform a real blast, in a real tunnel of a real mine). This demonstrator showed the maturity of the PERASPERA technology applied to the terrestrial field.
In mining, as well as in other fields, the CoRob-X ADRES was also used in other applications, such as search and rescue or terrain characterization.