MAP - A Mobile Agile Printer Robot for on-site Construction

In this paper, we present a Mobile Agile Printer (MAP) construction robot; a highly agile, 4-legged, omnidirectional robot capable of 3D printing large structures. To overcome dynamic challenges when operating within an outdoors construction site, MAP incorporates a high-DoF 3D printing system connected to a mobile platform with novel features designed to enable disturbance rejection and live adaption to the robot’s pose. In doing so, we demonstrate the benefits of designing construction robots with a focus on agility, a compact working volume and ability to operate within a potentially unlimited workspace. Performance tests were conducted showing smooth omni-directional motion as a key requirement for maintaining low 3D printing trajectory deviations over a large volume. In doing so, we show that MAP has the ability to construct in new ways more sensitive to its environment, context and concurrent on-site operations.

Sustarevas, J., Butters, D., Hammid, M., Pawar, V. M., Dwyer, G., & Stuart-Smith, R. “MAP - A Mobile Agile Printer Robot for on-site Construction”. In IEEE Staff (Ed.), 2018 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS), 2019: 2441–2448. Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). https://doi.org/10.1109/iros.2018.8593815

The Autonomous Manufacturing Lab (AML) explores the integration of robotic manufacturing and construction within architectural design. The AML aims to reduce the environmental and economic costs of design and production while enhancing their cultural and aesthetic impact. The lab's integrative methods for generative design and manufacturing are developed as semi-autonomous systems, exploring possibilities for artisanal-like craftsmanship to be scaled to large production volumes. This approach provides greater specificity and enhanced aesthetic character in design responses compared to traditional automated methods, whilst also reducing material use and waste within bespoke design and production processes. The AML's research enhances design and production capabilities across diverse manufacturing methods and materials by developing industrial and mobile robot fabrication techniques, multi-agent systems, AI/machine learning computational approaches, and applications of real-time sensor and computer vision technologies. This multidisciplinary research includes the development of Aerial Additive Manufacturing, recently published in Nature, which demonstrates the world’s first in-flight additive manufacturing by cooperating drones, representing a rapidly deployable form of collective robotic construction.

University of Pennsylvania Weitzman School of Design
The Weitzman School of Design prepares students to address complex sociocultural and environmental issues through thoughtful inquiry, creative expression, and innovation. As a diverse community of scholars and practitioners, we are committed to advancing the public good–both locally and globally–through art, design, planning, and preservation.

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MAP - A Mobile Agile Printer Robot for on-site Construction

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