Wind Resistance Mechanism of an Anole Lizard-Inspired Climbing Robot

Abstract

The stable operation of climbing robots exposed to high winds is of great significance for the health-monitoring of structures. This study proposes an anole lizard-like climbing robot inspired by its superior wind resistance. First, the stability mechanism of the anole lizard body in adhesion and desorption is investigated by developing adhesion and desorption models, respectively. Then, the hypothesis that the anole lizard improves its adhesion and stability performance through abdominal adjustment and trunk swing is tested by developing a simplified body model and kinematic model. After that, the structures of the toe, limb, and multi-stage flexible torso of the anole lizard-like climbing robot are designed. Subsequently, the aerodynamic behavior of the proposed robot under high-speed airflow are investigated using finite element analysis. The results show that when there is no obstacle, the climbing robot generates the normal force to enhance toepad friction and adhesion by tuning the abdomen’s shape to create an air pressure difference between the back and abdomen. When there is an obstacle, a component force is obtained through periodic oscillation of the spine and tail to resist the frontal winds resulting from the vortex paths generated by the airflow behind the obstacle. These results confirm that the proposed hypothesis is correct. Finally, the adhesion and wind resistance performance of the anole lizard-like climbing robot is tested through the developed experimental platform. It is found that the adhesion force is equal to 50 N when the pre-pressure is 20 N. Further, it is shown that the normal pressure of the proposed robot can reach 76.6% of its weight in a high wind of 14 m/s.