Abigaille-I: Towards the development of a spider-inspired climbing robot for space use

Abstract

This paper presents the design and testing of Abigaille-I, a spider-inspired robot. The system is miniaturized and has six legs and 18 actively controlled joints. Macro-, micro- and nano-structural design of the robot legs and feet are presented and preliminary experimental results are discussed. The long-term objective of this research is to develop an autonomous and miniaturized robotic system capable to negotiating terrain of any roughness and material and be eventually capable of operating in a space environment.