Roller-Quadrotor is a novel hybrid terrestrial and aerial quadrotor that combines the elevated maneuverability of the quadrotor with the lengthy endurance of the ground vehicle. This work presents the design, modeling, and experimental validation of Roller-Quadrotor. Flying is achieved through a quadrotor configuration, and four actuators providing thrust. Rolling is supported by unicycle-driven and rotor-assisted turning structure. During terrestrial locomotion, the vehicle needs to overcome rolling and turning resistance, thus saving energy compared to flight mode. This work overcomes the challenging problems of general rotorcraft, reduces energy consumption and allows to through special terrain, such as narrow gaps. It also solves the obstacle avoidance challenge faced by terrestrial robots by flying. We design the models and controllers for the vehicle. The experiment results show that it can switch between aerial and terrestrial locomotion, and be able to safely pass through a narrow gap half the size of its diameter. Besides, it is capable of rolling a distance approximately 3.8 times as much as flying or operating about 42.2 times as lengthy as flying. These results demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of the structure and control in rolling through special terrain and energy saving.

翻译：滚转四旋翼是一种新型空地混合四旋翼飞行器，其结合了四旋翼的高机动性与地面车辆的持久续航能力。本文介绍了滚转四旋翼的设计、建模与实验验证。飞行功能通过四旋翼构型实现，由四个执行器提供推力；滚行功能则依托单轮驱动与旋翼辅助转向结构完成。在地面运动过程中，飞行器需克服滚动与转向阻力，但相较飞行模式仍可节省能量。本研究解决了旋翼飞行器普遍面临的挑战性问题，降低了能耗，并使其能够穿越狭窄缝隙等特殊地形。此外，通过飞行能力克服了地面机器人的避障难题。我们设计了飞行器的模型与控制器。实验结果表明，该飞行器能够实现空中与地面运动模式切换，并安全穿越直径一半的狭窄缝隙。同时，其滚行距离约为飞行距离的3.8倍，续航时间可达飞行模式的42.2倍。这些结果验证了该结构及控制方法在特殊地形滚行与节能方面的可行性与有效性。