Robotics specialists from a group led by ETH professor Raffaello D’Andrea have created a new, cube-shaped robot that can balance on its pivot and compensate for external disturbances.
What makes the One-Wheel Cubli unique? Unlike its predecessors, it only requires a single reaction wheel.
It was almost ten years ago that researchers led by ETH robotics professor Raffaello D’Andrea made a splash with a robotic cube that was capable of balancing on its pivot.
Multiple reaction wheels in the cube’s interior were able to compensate for disturbances to a certain degree, making it harder to knock off balance. It was also able to jump up and move around via controlled falls.
Now it has a successor: the One-Wheel Cubli. That’s the name D’Andrea’s workshop gave to this new balancing artist. It only requires a single reaction wheel for its balancing act.
Instead of additional wheels, it is equipped – like a tightrope walker – with a balancing pole. As a result, the inertias differ in the two directions of motion, allowing the One-Wheel Cubli to stabilize both directions simultaneously.
In the latest issue of Mechatronics, the researchers introduce the One-Wheel Cubli.
