NIMS3D: An Autonomous Three-Dimensional Cabled Robot for Actuated Sensing Applications (MAS 3)

NIMS3D is a novel rapidly deployable cabled robot capable of accurate positioning and trajectory tracking within its 3-dimensional span. A generic sensor node is maneuvered by controlling the lengths of three support cables. We present initialization and calibration methods, means to determine the effective range of the robot, trajectory tracking algorithms, and experimental results that show 1) wide applicability for various sensor deployments 2) accurate and repeatable positioning, and 3) responsive and stable trajectory tracking.