ModQuad-DoF: A Novel Yaw Actuation for Modular Quadrotors

In nature it is very common for insects to work together in collaboration to achieve formation of structures such as bridges, platforms and other configurations. There is no centralized command that determines each individual’s motions, forces and connections, once each one of them determines its own behavior locally. A flying modular platform called ModQuad was …

Configuration Recognition with Distributed Information for Modular Robots

Modular robots are usually composed of multiple blocks with uniform docking interfaces that can be transformed into different configurations. It is a significant challenge to recognize modular robot configurations composed of hundreds of modules. Given a new configuration, it is important to match it to an existing configuration and, if true, map each module to …

Piccolissimo

Piccolissimo is the smallest self-powered flying vehicle (to the best of our knowledge). Thanks to its passive stability, it can fly with only one actuator. This makes it simple and low cost to construct and less likely to have a component fail.