This study focuses on developing a better comprehension of the mobility of lightweight autonomous vehicles with varying locomotion platforms on sand. This research involves four segments. The first segment is a review of military criteria for the development of lightweight unmanned ground vehicles, followed by a review a review of current methodologies for evaluating the terramechanic (vehicle-ground interaction) mobility measures of heavyweight wheeled and tracked vehicles, and ending with a review of the defining properties of deformable terrain with specific emphasis on sand. These present a basis for understanding what currently defines mobility and how mobility is quantified for traditional heavyweight wheeled and tracked vehicles, as well as an understanding of the environment of operation (sandy terrain) for the lightweight vehicles in this study. The second segment involves the identification of key properties associated with the mobility and operation of lightweight vehicles on sand as related to given mission criteria, so as to form a quantitative assessment system to compare lightweight vehicles of varying locomotion platforms. A table based on the House of Quality shows the relationships—high, low, or adverse—between mission profile requirements and general performance measures and geometries of vehicles under consideration for use. This table, when combined with known values for vehicle metrics, provides information for an index formula used to quantitatively compare the mobility of a user-chosen set of vehicles, regardless of their methods of locomotion. This table identifies several important or fundamental terramechanics properties that necessitate model development for robots with novel locomotion platforms and testing for lightweight wheeled and tracked vehicles so as to consider the adaptation of counterpart heavyweight terramechanics models for use. The third segment is a study of robots utilizing novel forms of locomotion, emphasizing the kinematics of locomotion (gait and foot placement) and proposed starting points for the development of terramechanics models so as to compare their mobility and performance with more traditional wheeled and tracked vehicles. In this study several new autonomous vehicles—bipedal, self-excited dynamic tripedal, active spoke-wheel—that are currently under development are explored. The final segment involves experimentation of several lightweight vehicles and robots on sand. A preliminary experimentation was performed evaluating a lightweight autonomous tracked vehicle for its performance and operation on sand. A bipedal robot was then tested to study the foot-ground interaction with and sinkage into a medium-grade sand, utilizing a one of the first-developed walking gaits. Finally, a comprehensive set of experiments was performed on a lightweight wheeled vehicle. While the terramechanics properties of wheeled and tracked vehicles, such as the contact patch pressure distribution, have been understood and models have been developed for heavy vehicles, the feasibility of extrapolating them to the analysis of light vehicles is still under analysis. A wheeled all-terrain vehicle was tested for effects of sand gradation, vehicle speed, and vehicle payload on measures of pressure and sinkage in the contact patch, and preliminary analysis is presented on the sinkage of the wheeled all-terrain vehicle. These four segments—review of properties of sandy terrain and measures of and criteria for the mobility of lightweight vehicles operating on sandy terrain, the development of the comparison matrix and indexing function, modeling and development of novel forms of locomotion, and physical experimentation of lightweight tracked and wheeled vehicles as well as a bipedal robot—combine to give an overall picture of mobility that spans across different forms of locomotion. / Master of Science

Este trabalho aplica um procedimento para análise do desempenho de um autoveículo rodoviário (Kadett GS 2.0 da General Motors do Brasil), em aceleração e desaceleração (freagem), considerando o \"passeio do centro de gravidade\" e as \"restrições impostas pelo binômio pneumático x pavimento\". A dinâmica do processo de frenagem do veículo/exemplo é estudada, obtendo-se a desaceleração e o espaço percorrido, como função do \"passeio do centro de gravidade\" e duas \"restrições impostas pelo pneumático x pavimento\". Comparações teórico-experimentais são realizadas. Para o controle do processo de frenagem do veículo/exemplo, obtém-se uma \"função-transferência\" que muda continuamente o balanceamento das forças de frenagem nos eixos, utilizando-se, para isto, de sinais oriundos de um acelerômetro e de um sensor de peso instalados no veículo. Esta função otimiza o processo de frenagem para qualquer carregamento permissível do veículo e em qualquer nível de desaceleração (qualquer tipo de piso). Deste veículo obtêm-se os diagramas de rendimento, aceleração líquida para cada marcha engrenada, e, posteriormente, o \"tempo de aceleração\" e \"retomada de velocidade\", como função do \"passeio do centro de gravidade\" e das \"restrições impostas pelo pneumático x pavimento\". Comparações teórico-experimentais são também realizadas. Em todos os casos, foram obtidos bons resultados na comparação teórico-experimental, validando o modelo matemático elaborado e o procedimento de análise. / This work applies a procedure for the analysis of the performance of a road vehicle, (General Motors do Brasil, Kadett GS 2.0), in acceleration and deceleration (braking), which takes into consideration the centre of gravity envelope and the restrictions imposed by the tyre/surface relationship. A study is made of the dynamic braking process of the vehicle/example, and the deceleration and distance covered are obtained as a functions of the c.g. position and the tyre/surface relationship. Comparisons are made between theory and experiment. A transfer function is obtained for the control of the braking process of the vehicle/example, that continually changes the balance of the braking forces on the axles, thorugh the use of signals transmitted from an accelerometer (g - meter) and a sensor giving the installed weight of the vehicle. This function optimizes the braking process for any permissible vehicle load and deceleration level, for any type of surface. The performance diagrams, the acceleration in each gear, and, following these the acceleration time and time-to-return-to-normal-speed are obtained as functions of the position of the c.g. and the restrictions imposed by the tyre/surface relationship. Comparisons of theory with practice are also made. In all cases, comparisons between theory and practice give good results, validating the mathematical model and the analysis procedure.

Este trabalho aplica um procedimento para análise do desempenho de um autoveículo rodoviário (Kadett GS 2.0 da General Motors do Brasil), em aceleração e desaceleração (freagem), considerando o \"passeio do centro de gravidade\" e as \"restrições impostas pelo binômio pneumático x pavimento\". A dinâmica do processo de frenagem do veículo/exemplo é estudada, obtendo-se a desaceleração e o espaço percorrido, como função do \"passeio do centro de gravidade\" e duas \"restrições impostas pelo pneumático x pavimento\". Comparações teórico-experimentais são realizadas. Para o controle do processo de frenagem do veículo/exemplo, obtém-se uma \"função-transferência\" que muda continuamente o balanceamento das forças de frenagem nos eixos, utilizando-se, para isto, de sinais oriundos de um acelerômetro e de um sensor de peso instalados no veículo. Esta função otimiza o processo de frenagem para qualquer carregamento permissível do veículo e em qualquer nível de desaceleração (qualquer tipo de piso). Deste veículo obtêm-se os diagramas de rendimento, aceleração líquida para cada marcha engrenada, e, posteriormente, o \"tempo de aceleração\" e \"retomada de velocidade\", como função do \"passeio do centro de gravidade\" e das \"restrições impostas pelo pneumático x pavimento\". Comparações teórico-experimentais são também realizadas. Em todos os casos, foram obtidos bons resultados na comparação teórico-experimental, validando o modelo matemático elaborado e o procedimento de análise. / This work applies a procedure for the analysis of the performance of a road vehicle, (General Motors do Brasil, Kadett GS 2.0), in acceleration and deceleration (braking), which takes into consideration the centre of gravity envelope and the restrictions imposed by the tyre/surface relationship. A study is made of the dynamic braking process of the vehicle/example, and the deceleration and distance covered are obtained as a functions of the c.g. position and the tyre/surface relationship. Comparisons are made between theory and experiment. A transfer function is obtained for the control of the braking process of the vehicle/example, that continually changes the balance of the braking forces on the axles, thorugh the use of signals transmitted from an accelerometer (g - meter) and a sensor giving the installed weight of the vehicle. This function optimizes the braking process for any permissible vehicle load and deceleration level, for any type of surface. The performance diagrams, the acceleration in each gear, and, following these the acceleration time and time-to-return-to-normal-speed are obtained as functions of the position of the c.g. and the restrictions imposed by the tyre/surface relationship. Comparisons of theory with practice are also made. In all cases, comparisons between theory and practice give good results, validating the mathematical model and the analysis procedure.