Introducing the LEMUR 3 climbing robot from JPL, the latest in a series of limbed robots from JPL.
LEMUR 3 is a four-limbed robot with 7 degrees of freedom per limb. It has swappable end effectors that allow it to climb on a variety of surfaces, or maneuver in microgravity. Using microspine grippers, LEMUR 3 demonstrated rock climbing in a lava tube in the El Malpais National Monument in New Mexico. Microspines use sharp hooks to grip bumps, pits, and ledges on a rough surface.
LEMUR 3 has also used gecko-adhesive end effectors to demonstrate mobility on smooth surfaces. In space, this would allow a LEMUR-like robot to crawl across the outside of a space station or satellite, doing inspection, repairs, taking videos, or pointing scientific instruments.
The end effectors can be swapped out depending on the application with minimal changes to the software, if any. A new ice-screw end effector is also in development for LEMUR 3 so that it can explore ice caves and glaciers.
Current work is focused on providing LEMUR 3 with increased perception and autonomy so that it can choose its own footholds and generate limb trajectories onboard in real time.
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