Building a robotic platform from raw materials can take anything from a few weeks to a few years to complete, depending on the complexity and size of the platform. This paper aims to introduce a novel approach of using abrasive waterjet machining for manufacturing a fairly complex robotic platform within a few days. Two robotic platforms built using this approach will be discussed. These platforms are all-terrain vehicles, used as a mine inspection robot (Shongololo) and as agricultural inspection robot (Dassie), respectively. The advantage of using abrasive waterjet machining is the speed and precision at which the final product can be produced, with little to no additional finishing required.
Reference:
De Ronde, W. and Swart, J.H. 2016. Rapid prototyping of robotic platforms. 17th Annual Conference on the Rapid Product Development Association of South Africa, 2-4 November 2016, Vaal University of Technology, Vanderbijlpark, South Africa
De Ronde, W., & Swart, J. (2016). Rapid prototyping of robotic platforms. http://hdl.handle.net/10204/9307
De Ronde, Willis, and JH Swart. "Rapid prototyping of robotic platforms." (2016): http://hdl.handle.net/10204/9307
De Ronde W, Swart J, Rapid prototyping of robotic platforms; 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/10204/9307 .
17th Annual Conference on the Rapid Product Development Association of South Africa, 2-4 November 2016, Vaal University of Technology, Vanderbijlpark, South Africa.
