SBIR PHASE II: Two Degree-of-Freedom Spherical Pointing Actuator

对于要求苛刻的航空电子和机器人应用，特别是中央凹机器视觉的商业化，主动视觉商业化的关键技术挑战是缺乏具有高速，高精度，快速定位时间，小尺寸，小功耗和轻重量的指向机构。Amherst系统公司的小企业创新研究二期项目将开发一种低成本、高性能、微型两自由度（DOF）倾斜指向机构，称为球面指向致动器（SPA），以满足移动机器人主动视觉凝视要求。该项目还将开发一个实现SPA开环和闭环控制的计算机接口。传统的平移机构耦合I-DOF电机，其运动学链施加了大重量（几磅），扭矩（高达数十英尺磅）和功率（数百瓦）的有效载荷要求，这在小型移动平台上是不切实际的。SPA通过将两个自由度集成到一个旋转驱动器中，减少了运动学链和有效载荷要求。它提供精确，快速（1000度/秒），广角偏移（90度）指向小质量（数十粒），功率（10 W）和空间（约一立方英寸）。SPA由四个线圈（每个自由度两个）组成，安装在一个四面体阻尼磁路的两侧，作用于一个平衡磁铁；磁铁支撑着一个视觉传感器，该传感器凝视着电路的开路底座。与不使用磁路的球面指向电机设计相比，该设计具有更宽的偏移和更简单的控制（阻尼动力学，固有定心力，不需要定位线圈）。球形指向致动器（SPA）允许更小、更可靠的主动视觉系统用于自主安全、自动目标识别、无人地面和空中飞行器、商业机器人、智能武器和智能车辆。SPA与中央凹成像仪相结合，提供宽视场以改善搜索，快速帧率以改善跟踪，高局部敏锐度以改善识别。低成本的传统组件和制造工艺保证了商业可行性。* * *

*** 9704266 Bandera A key technical challenge to the commercialization of active vision for demanding avionics and robotics applications, and particularly to the commercialization of foveal machine vision, is the lack of a pointing mechanism featuring high speed, high accuracy, fast settling time, small size, small power consumption, and light weight. This Small Business Innovation Research Phase II project from Amherst Systems, Inc. will develop a low-cost, high performance, miniature two degree-of-freedom (DOF) pan-tilt pointing mechanism, called a spherical pointing actuator (SPA), that meets mobile robot active vision gazing requirements. This project will also develop a computer interface implementing open-loop and closed-loop control of the SPA. Conventional pan-tilt mechanisms couple I-DOF motors, and their kinematics chain imposes large weight (several pounds), torque (up to tens of foot-pounds), and power (several hundred watts) payload requirements that are impractical in small mobile platforms. The SPA reduces the kinematics chain and payload requirements by integrating both degrees of freedom into one rotary actuator. It provides accurate, rapid (1000 degrees/sec), wide, angle excursion (90 degrees) pointing of small mass (tens of grains) with little power (10 W) and space (on the order of one cubic inch). The SPA consists of four coils (two per DOF) mounted on the sides of a tetrahedral damped magnetic circuit that acts upon a gimbaled magnet; the magnet supports a visual sensor gazing out the circuit's open base. This design features wider excursion and simpler control (damped dynamics, inherent centering force, no home position coil required) than spherical pointing motor designs that do not use magnetic circuitry. The spherical pointing actuator (SPA) permits smaller and more reliable active vision systems for autonomous security, automatic target recognition, unmanned ground and air vehicles, commercial robots, smart weapons, and smart vehicles. An SPA combined wit h a foveal imager provides wide field-of-view to improve search, fast frame rate to improve tracking, and high localized acuity to improve recognition. Low-cost conventional components and fabrication procedures assure commercial feasibility. ***