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dc.contributor.advisorSteven Dubowsky.en_US
dc.contributor.authorKettler, Daniel Terranceen_US
dc.contributor.otherMassachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Aeronautics and Astronautics.en_US
dc.date.accessioned2010-01-07T15:49:56Z
dc.date.available2010-01-07T15:49:56Z
dc.date.copyright2009en_US
dc.date.issued2009en_US
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/50272
dc.descriptionThesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Aeronautics and Astronautics, 2009.en_US
dc.descriptionThis electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections.en_US
dc.descriptionMIT Institute Archives copy: with CD-ROM; divisional library copy with no CD-ROM.en_US
dc.descriptionIncludes bibliographical references (p. 93-98).en_US
dc.description.abstractRising world oil prices and advanced oil recovery techniques have made it economically attractive to rehabilitate abandoned oil wells. This requires guiding tools through well junctions where divergent branches leave the main wellbore. The unknown locations and shapes of these junctions must be determined. Harsh down-well conditions prevent the use of ranged sensors. However, robotic tactile exploration using a manipulator is well suited to this problem. This tactile characterization must be done quickly because of the high costs of working on oil wells. Consequently, intelligent tactile exploration algorithms that can characterize a shape using sparse data sets must be developed. This thesis explores the design and system architecture of robotic manipulators for down-well tactile exploration. A design approach minimizing sensing is adopted to produce a system that is mechanically robust and suited to the harsh down-well environment. A feasibility study on down-well tactile exploration manipulators is conducted. This study focuses on the mature robotic technology of link and joint manipulators with zero or low kinematic redundancy. This study produces a field system architecture that specifies a unified combination of control, sensing, kinematic solutions for down-well applications. An experimental system is built to demonstrate the proposed field system architecture and test control and intelligent tactile exploration algorithms. Experimental results to date have indicated acceptability of the proposed field system architecture and have demonstrated the ability to characterize geometry with sparse tactile data.en_US
dc.description.abstract(cont.) Serpentine manipulators implemented using digital mechatronic actuation are also considered. Digital mechatronic devices use actuators with discrete output states and the potential to be mechanically robust and inexpensive. The design of digital mechatronic devices is challenging. Design parameter optimization methods are developed and applied to a design case study of a manipulator in a constrained workspace. This research demonstrates that down-well tactile exploration with a manipulator is feasible. Experimental results show that the proposed field system architecture, a 4 degree-of-freedom anthropomorphic manipulator, can obtain accurate tactile data without using any sensor feedback besides manipulator joint angles.en_US
dc.description.statementofresponsibilityby Daniel Terrance Kettler.en_US
dc.format.extent131 p.en_US
dc.language.isoengen_US
dc.publisherMassachusetts Institute of Technologyen_US
dc.relation.requiresSystem requirements: CD-ROM drive.en_US
dc.rightsM.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.en_US
dc.rights.urihttp://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582en_US
dc.subjectAeronautics and Astronautics.en_US
dc.titleMechanical design for the tactile exploration of constrained internal geometriesen_US
dc.typeThesisen_US
dc.description.degreeS.M.en_US
dc.contributor.departmentMassachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics
dc.identifier.oclc466111601en_US


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