Design and Prototyping of a Biomimetic Serpentine Robot

Objectives: In this study, a mechanism for a biomimetic serpentine robot is designed and tested. Methods/Analysis: A field survey was conducted to notice various parameters of snakes like their locomotion patterns, sizes, shape, speed, etc. Based on the observations and other important design considerations a mechanism was designed consisting of components analogous to that of snake’s anatomy. As the prototype would consist of abundant segments, analysis and simulation of a single segment was performed to validate the mechanism. After validation, the prototype was manufactured, controlled and tested. Findings: Although, there had been snake robots developed in the past, none of bot could depict the natural curve of snake’s locomotion. The bots are modular i.e. consists of abundant modules connected to each other by rigid rotating joints which disallows them to perform the perfect curve of snake. Novelty/Improvement: The mechanism developed in this study overcomes the drawbacks of previous models and hence is able to depict the serpenoid curve with maximum accuracy providing a real life curve of snake. The first prototype is cheap to manufacture and further improvement could really prove promising hypothesis.