A novel design of an amphibious robot having webbed feet as duck

Abstract

Amphibious robots typically use wheels or track systems when on land and switch to propellers when on water. In this paper, a novel design of a duck-inspired amphibious robot having webbed feet is presented which will use the same propulsion system for both swimming and walking. After actual observation of the ducks movement underwater, it is found that they move in the water by pulling their webbed feet back and forth. Imitating this motion provides better locomotion for amphibious robots which can swim, walk, and climb stairs using the same mechanism as ducks. The objective of this paper is to design and develop functional duck feet for an amphibious robot. The uneven surface of the duck feet design allows the robot to move on muddy, sandy, icy and hard land terrain easily. In addition, construction of an amphibious robot which is able to swim, walk and climb stairs using the same mechanism is done. The construction requires a combination of mechanical, electronic, and control system design to increase the functionality of amphibious robot. The mechanism of walking, swimming, and climbing stairs by the robot are provided in detail in this paper.