Visual Exploration-Enhanced Quadruped Robot with Active-Passive Composite Telescope Mechanism

Navigating hazardous environments and confined spaces during disaster search and rescue operations poses significant challenges to both human rescuers and conventional robotic systems. Recognizing the need for enhanced capabilities, we introduce a Visual Exploration-Enhanced Quadruped Robot (VEQR), a novel platform specifically designed to improve adaptability and exploration in such demanding scenarios. The VEQR combines a quadruped robot with an innovative active-passive composite telescopic mechanism—a compact, 12.8 mm diameter device equipped with a camera—that enables maneuvering through narrow and curved spaces like slits and debris-filled areas. The bending and insertion/retraction capabilities of this mechanism improve the dexterity of the robot in confined spaces and extend its reach into deeper, hard-to-access zones. Experimental results demonstrate the VEQR’s proficiency in overcoming obstacles, inspecting confined spaces, and providing clear visual feedback. Notably, the VEQR successfully traversed narrow and winding passages as small as 50 mm diameter and inspected targets positioned up to 0.6 mm deep within confined spaces, confirming its effectiveness as a robust robot for search and rescue operations in hazardous environments.