arXiv:2512.05008cs.RO2025-12

提出统一仿真框架,模拟蛇形机器人在软硬地形的爬行与翻滚。

Contact-Implicit Modeling and Simulation of a Snake Robot on Compliant and Granular Terrain

  • 用接触隐式方法建模摩擦交互,适配不同地形运动。
  • 软土地面下预测滑移、沉陷和受力重分布,效率下降显著。
  • 适合研究复杂地形移动的机器人研发者参考。

本论文提出一种统一建模与仿真框架,用于分析COBRA蛇形机器人在刚性、柔性及颗粒状地形上的侧向蜿蜒与翻滚运动。采用接触隐式方法建模侧向蜿蜒过程中的分布摩擦,通过MATLAB Simscape仿真与刚性地面及松沙物理实验验证。为捕捉地形变形影响,将Project Chrono的土壤接触模型(SCM)集成到多体动力学系统中,可预测软质基底上滑移、沉陷及载荷重分布,导致步幅效率降低。针对陡坡高速滚动运动,使用Chrono DEM引擎模拟颗粒级相互作用,揭示了土壤失效、间歇性离地与能量耗散机制,这些现象无法由刚性模型捕捉。上述方法覆盖实时控制仿真与高保真颗粒物理仿真。结果表明,刚性地面模型可准确预测短时运动,而连续介质与粒子基地形建模对软质动态环境的可靠机动性分析至关重要。该工作建立分层仿真流程,推动复杂非结构化环境中机器人鲁棒、地形感知的运动能力。

原文摘要 · Abstract (English)

This thesis presents a unified modeling and simulation framework for analyzing sidewinding and tumbling locomotion of the COBRA snake robot across rigid, compliant, and granular terrains. A contact-implicit formulation is used to model distributed frictional interactions during sidewinding, and validated through MATLAB Simscape simulations and physical experiments on rigid ground and loose sand. To capture terrain deformation effects, Project Chrono's Soil Contact Model (SCM) is integrated with the articulated multibody dynamics, enabling prediction of slip, sinkage, and load redistribution that reduce stride efficiency on deformable substrates. For high-energy rolling locomotion on steep slopes, the Chrono DEM Engine is used to simulate particle-resolved granular interactions, revealing soil failure, intermittent lift-off, and energy dissipation mechanisms not captured by rigid models. Together, these methods span real-time control-oriented simulation and high-fidelity granular physics. Results demonstrate that rigid-ground models provide accurate short-horizon motion prediction, while continuum and particle-based terrain modeling becomes necessary for reliable mobility analysis in soft and highly dynamic environments. This work establishes a hierarchical simulation pipeline that advances robust, terrain-aware locomotion for robots operating in challenging unstructured settings.

蛇形机器人地形建模接触隐式颗粒仿真

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