An Agent-based Tetrahedral Walker

Abstract

ANTS (autonomous nano technology swarm) SMART (super miniaturized addressable reconfigurable technology) architectures were initiated at the Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) to develop new kinds of robotic structures capable of: goal-oriented motion, changing its form to optimize its function, adapting to new environmental demands, and/or repairing itself. To begin to explore the possibilities of these concepts and the possible application of multi-agent control, a series of increasingly complex roving shapes leading up to the tetrahedron were considered. The goal is to have the structure move from an initial location to a specified goal location. The tetrahedron has six struts that can be reversibly deployed or stowed. More complex structures will be formed by interconnecting these reconfigurable tetrahedra, making structures that are scalable and massively parallel systems. The full functionality of such a complex system requires fully autonomous operations. This paper will address this innovative use of multi-agent system technology that is being used to achieve the desired autonomous behaviors as well as the increasingly complex staged approach in the development of the multi-agent tet