title: Towards active capsular endoscopy: preliminary results on a legged platform.
abstract: This paper illustrates the problem of active locomotion in the gastrointestinal tract for endoscopic capsules. Authors analyze the problem of locomotion in unstructured, flexible and tubular environments and explain the reasons leading to the selection of a legged system. They present a theoretical simulation of legged capsule locomotion, which is used to define the optimal parameters for capsule design and gait selection. Finally, a legged capsule--about 3 cm3 in volume--is presented; it consists of 4 back legs whose actuation is achieved thanks to a miniaturized DC brushless motor. In vitro tests demonstrate good performance in terms of achievable speed (92 mm/min).
authors.affiliation: Scuola Superiore Sant' Anna, Pisa, Italy. arianna@sssup.it
authors.forename: Arianna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Menciassi
authors.forename: Cesare
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Stefanini
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Orlandi
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Quirini
authors.forename: Paolo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Dario
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D032701:Biomimetics / Q000295:instrumentation*; D053705:Capsule Endoscopes; D004867:Equipment Design; D019544:Equipment Failure Analysis; D041981:Gastrointestinal Tract / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D008124:Locomotion; D008904:Miniaturization; D009038:Motion; D012371:Robotics; D014741:Video Recording / Q000295:instrumentation*