Omnibot: A Small Versatile Robotic Platform Capable of Air, Ground, and Underwater Operation

Abstract

Autonomous systems are increasingly sought after to carry out complex tasks yet most available systems are designed to operate in a limited environment. By combining different mechanisms into a single design, a new kind of universal robotic platform called the Omnibot is proposed, which can fly, move on the ground, move on the surface, and dive into the water at the same time. To achieve this goal, a quadrotor configuration, screwdrive drivetrain, and a bladder-based buoyancy unit are proposed as a robotic design and a proof-of-concept platform is developed. Preliminary results demonstrate that the system is lightweight, cost-effective, versatile, and able to operate in the four kinds of environments and switch between them seamlessly without changing its hardware. The proposed design would enable a robotic system to switch among its methods for locomotion and choose the best mode according to the current goal, environment, and the internal power supply conditions, thus making it especially suited to carry out complex missions in changing and unpredictable environments.