<p style="text-align: justify">&nbsp; This paper discusses the design, building, and testing of a novel robot that is used to collect ticks in a variety of rugged terrains in remote areas. The robot provides a new approach for US Army Medical Researchers or other biologists to collect the insects remotely by using a robot equipped with a vision system and GPS system. The approach will change the way that insects are being collected with automation instead of human manual work. The robot is designed to operate in different terrains, including soft grass, dirt, muddy soil, and rocky surface. The robot is weighted within 30 lbs, so the army staff or soldiers can easily carry it to the field.</p><p style="text-align: justify">&nbsp; The tick collection robot consists of a robust platform, a driving system, an assembled flag section for high-performance tick selection, and GPS and vision system for autonomous control. There are two modes for tick collection: Continuous mode and stationary mode. In the continuous mode, the robot can run 3 hours continuously, and in the stationary mode, the robot can operate 6 hours at one location to collect ticks. The robot platform is about 29.64 lbs without stationary components, which makes it easy to carry. The driving system enables the robot to run through various types of abovementioned locations and obstacles. The assembly flag component will make it easy to collect and clean the tick attached to its porous surface.</p>

Platform Development of Tick Collection Robot

Paper Proceedings: https://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/MSEC/MSEC2021/volume/85062

2021 International Manufacturing Science and Engineering Conference (MSEC2021)

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