Design and manufacture of a low cost educational hexapod rover

The paper deals with the design and realization of a hexapod rover prototype completely manufactured by students and researchers of the Space Robotics Group of the II Faculty of Engineering of the University of Bologna “ALMA MATER”. The rover project has been developed for didactical purposes, with the aim of involving students in practical, hands-on education, pushing them to face real problems and to put in practice what they have learnt in theory during regular courses. The work done is described in the paper, highlighting its potential to test different solutions in autonomous navigation systems: low-cost sensors, innovative algorithms and different step procedures. Moreover, the mechanical and electronic solutions adopted for leg design, main controller, and remote control are discussed and depicted in the paper.