Design and kinematics of a lightweight cruciform continuum robot

Abstract. The design of new lightweight and dexterous configurations is a major research focus for continuum robotics. This work proposes a cruciform continuum robot. Its unique feature is that it is formed by multiple cruciform-arranged elastic sheets with a single dimension of motion connected in series, and thus it has low-coupling motion characteristics. In addition, the cruciform continuum robot has the advantages of lighter weight (65 g), better dexterity, and higher motion accuracy. In this paper, the forward and inverse kinematics models of the cruciform continuum robot are established by geometric methods based on the assumption of constant curvature, and its workspace is analysed. It is experimentally verified that the tip position errors are less than 1 mm, and the cable length errors are less than 0.4 mm. Further, the cruciform continuum robot is successfully used for the nucleic acid detection simulation experiment, which confirms its good dexterity and man–machine safety. The main contribution of this paper is to provide a new configuration for the lightweight and dexterous continuum robots, and to further provide a reference method for improving their modelling accuracy from the perspective of structure.