Session: DTM-02-01 - Discussions on Design Creativity & Ideation

Paper Number: 89862

89862 - Reconfigurable Robot Design Aided With Design Cards 

Reconfigurable products and systems, or more broadly transformer {products and systems, change their state or morphology to perform multiple functions depending on the needs. Such systems continue to play a vital role in the development of a wide range of autonomous robotic solutions in the areas of surveillance, cleaning and maintenance, and rescue. Current reconfigurable robotic systems emphasize software, control, electrical module development. However, there is a lack of design aids that support the mechanism design of reconfigurable robotic systems. The main research question for this study is: How can the design of reconfigurable mechanisms be aided in the early stages of reconfigurable robot development, focusing on the exploration and generation of mechanism ideas? Prior work on reconfigurable systems identified three main transformation principles: expand/collapse, expose/cover, fuse/divide, and twenty facilitators. A set of design cards has been created using these underlying principles and facilitators to aid in developing reconfigurable mechanisms that inspire innovation and novelty. We conducted an empirical study on a range of existing mechanisms across several domains by observing the mechanisms motion with respect to the underlying principles and facilitators, resulting in a set of design cards with visual, morphological, and state representations.  The proposed design card usefulness is validated by conducting a pilot ideation study in designing a shape-shifting robot.

Presenting Author: Manivannan Kalimuthu Singapore University of Technology and Design

Presenting Author Biography: Manivannan Kalimuthu is currently an PhD student with the Engineering Product Development Pillar at Singapore University of Technology and Design. He received his M.sc degree from Nanyang Technological University in 2019 and he obtained his B.E degree from Anna University in 2016. His research interest mainly emphasizes on the design principles of self-reconfigurable robots as well as floor cleaning and ship maintenance robots. He has been co-authored in multiple journals and conference papers. He is the recipient of SG Mark design award in 2017 and A Design award in 2019 for the design of S_Tetro: A Modular Staircase Cleaning Robot.

Authors:

Manivannan Kalimuthu Singapore University of Technology and Design
Abdullah Aamir Hayat Singapore University of Technology and Design
Mohan Rajesh Elara Singapore University of Technology and Design
Kris Wood College of Engineering, Design and Computing University of Colorado Denver