Whegs (''wheel-legs or wing-legs'') are mechanisms for
robot
A robot is a machine—especially one programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the control may be embedded within. Robots may ...
locomotion. Whegs use a strategy of locomotion that combines the simplicity of the
wheel with the obstacle-clearing advantages of the foot.
Whegs were pioneered at the Biologically Inspired Robotics Laboratory at
Case Western Reserve University. Whegs development and improvements based on
cockroach
Cockroaches (or roaches) are a Paraphyly, paraphyletic group of insects belonging to Blattodea, containing all members of the group except termites. About 30 cockroach species out of 4,600 are associated with human habitats. Some species are we ...
climbing behavior in several robots has been done in collaboration with the Ritzmann lab in the Biology department at
Case Western Reserve University on cockroach climbing behavior.
Whegs robots were inspired by the Prolero robot, designed in 1996 at
the European Space Agency
, owners =
, headquarters = Paris, Île-de-France, France
, coordinates =
, spaceport = Guiana Space Centre
, seal = File:ESA emblem seal.png
, seal_size = 130px
, image = Views in the Main Control Room (1205 ...
, and the
RHex robot, developed by a multiuniversity effort funded by the
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. The mobility system is based on studies on the locomotion of the cockroach.
Wing-legs are found on flying robots and are
wings
A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expre ...
dual-purposed as legs for locomotion when the robot is on the ground.
[Laboratory of Intelligent System]
DALER project
/ref>
References
Hexapod robots
Robots of the United States
Biorobotics
2000s robots
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