Alexander Spröwitz

Towards dynamic trot gait locomotion: Design, control, and experiments with Cheetah-cub, a compliant quadruped robot

We present the design of a novel compliant quadruped robot, called Cheetah-cub, and a series of locomotion experiments with fast trotting gaits. The robot’s leg configuration is based on a spring-loaded, pantograph mechanism with multiple segments. A dedicated open-loop locomotion controller was derived and implemented. Experiments were run in simulation and in hardware on flat terrain and with a step down, demonstrating the robot’s self-stabilizing properties. The robot reached a running trot with short flight phases with a maximum Froude number of FR = 1.30, or 6.9 body lengths per second. Morphological parameters such as the leg design also played a role. By adding distal in-series elasticity, self-stability and maximum robot speed improved. Our robot has several advantages, especially when compared with larger and stiffer quadruped robot designs. (1) It is, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, the fastest of all quadruped robots below 30kg (in terms of Froude number and body lengths per second). (2) It shows self-stabilizing behavior over a large range of speeds with open-loop control. (3) It is lightweight, compact, and electrically powered. (4) It is cheap, easy to reproduce, robust, and safe to handle. This makes it an excellent tool for research of multi-segment legs in quadruped robots.

Passive compliant quadruped robot using Central Pattern Generators for locomotion control

We present a new quadruped robot, ldquoCheetahrdquo, featuring three-segment pantographic legs with passive compliant knee joints. Each leg has two degrees of freedom - knee and hip joint can be actuated using proximal mounted RC servo motors, force transmission to the knee is achieved by means of a bowden cable mechanism. Simple electronics to command the actuators from a desktop computer have been designed in order to test the robot. A Central Pattern Generator (CPG) network has been implemented to generate different gaits. A parameter space search was performed and tested on the robot to optimize forward velocity.

Benefits of an active spine supported bounding locomotion with a small compliant quadruped robot

We studied the effect of the control of an active spine versus a fixed spine, on a quadruped robot running in bound gait. Active spine supported actuation led to faster locomotion, with less foot sliding on the ground, and a higher stability to go straight forward. However, we did no observe an improvement of cost of transport of the spine-actuated, faster robot system compared to the rigid spine.

Roombots: A Hardware Perspective on 3D Self-Reconfiguration and Locomotion with a Homogeneous Modular Robot

In this work we provide hands-on experience on designing and testing a self-reconfiguring modular robotic system, Roombots (RB), to be used among others for adaptive furniture. In the long term, we envision that RB can be used to create sets of furniture, like stools, chairs and tables that can move in their environment and that change shape and functionality during the day. In this article, we present the first results towards that long term vision. We demonstrate locomotion and reconfiguration of single and metamodule RB over 3D surfaces, in a structured environment equipped with embedded connection ports. RB assemblies can move around in non-structured environments, by using rotational or wheel-like locomotion. We show a proof of concept for transferring a Roombots metamodule back into the structured grid, by aligning it in an entrapment mechanism. Finally, we analyze remaining challenges to master the full Roombots scenario, and discuss the impact on future Roombots hardware.

Passive compliance for a RC servo-controlled bouncing robot

A novel and low-cost passively compliant mechanism is described that can be used with RC servos to actuate legged robots in tasks involving high dynamic loads such as bouncing. Compliance is achieved by combining visco-elastic material and metal parts. Joint response to dynamic loads is evaluated using real-world experiments and force data are obtained from a Lagrangian analysis of the system. The experimental results demonstrate the applicative potential of this mechanism.

Modular control of limit cycle locomotion over unperceived rough terrain

We present a general approach to design modular controllers for limit cycle locomotion over unperceived rough terrain. The control strategy uses a Central Pattern Generator (CPG) model implemented as coupled nonlinear oscillators as basis. Stumbling correction and leg extension reflexes are implemented as feedbacks for fast corrections, and model-based posture control mechanisms define feedbacks for continuous corrections. The control strategy is validated on a detailed physics-based simulated model of a compliant quadruped robot, the Oncilla robot. We demonstrate dynamic locomotion with a speed of more than 1.5 BodyLength/s over unperceived uneven terrains, steps, and slopes.

Automatic gait generation in modular robots: “to oscillate or to rotate; that is the question”

Modular robots offer the possibility to quickly design robots with a high diversity of shapes and functionalities. This nice feature also brings an important challenge: namely how to design efficient locomotion gaits for arbitrary robot structures with many degrees of freedom. In this paper, we present a framework that allows one to explore and identify highly different gaits for a given arbitrary-shaped modular robot. We use simulated robots made of several Roombots modules that have three degrees of freedom each. These modules have the interesting feature that they can produce both oscillatory movements (i.e. periodic movements around a rest position) and rotational movements (i.e. with continuously increasing angle), leading to rich locomotion patterns. Here we ask ourselves which types of movements — purely oscillatory, purely rotational, or a combination of both— lead to the fastest gaits. To address this question we designed a control architecture based on a distributed system of coupled phase oscillators that can produce synchronized rotations and oscillations in many degrees of freedom. We also designed a specific optimization algorithm that can automatically design hybrid controllers, i.e. controllers that use oscillations in some joints and rotations in others. The proposed framework is verified by multiple simulations for several robot morphologies. The results show that (i) the question whether it is better to oscillate or to rotate depends on the morphology of the robot, and that in general it is best to do both, (ii) the optimization framework can successfully generate hybrid controllers that outperform purely oscillatory and purely rotational ones, and (iii) the resulting gaits are fast, innovative, and would have been hard to design by hand.

ATRIAS: Design and validation of a tether-free 3D-capable spring-mass bipedal robot

ATRIAS is a human-scale 3D-capable bipedal robot designed to mechanically embody the spring-mass model for dynamic walking and running. To help bring the extensive work on this theoretical model further into practice, we present the design and validation of a spring-mass robot that can operate in real-world settings (i.e. off-tether and without planarizing restraints). We outline the mechanisms and design choices necessary to meet these specifications, particularly ATRIAS’ four-bar series-elastic leg design. We experimentally demonstrate the following robot capabilities, which are characteristics of the target model. 1) We present the robot’s physical capability for both grounded and aerial gaits, including planar walking and sustained hopping, while being more efficient than similarly gait-versatile bipeds. 2) The robot can be controlled by enforcing quantities derived from the simpler spring-mass model, such as leg angles and leg forces. 3) ATRIAS replicates the center-of-mass dynamics of human hopping and (novelly) walking, a key spring-mass model feature. Lastly, we present dynamically stable stepping in 3D without external support, demonstrating that this theoretical model has practical potential for real-world locomotion.

Comparing the effect of different spine and leg designs for a small bounding quadruped robot

We present Lynx-robot, a quadruped, modular, compliant machine. It alternately features a directly actuated, single-joint spine design, or an actively supported, passive compliant, multi-joint spine configuration. Both spine configurations bend in the sagittal plane. This study aims at characterizing these two, largely different spine concepts, for a bounding gait of a robot with a three segmented, pantograph leg design. An earlier, similar-sized, bounding, quadruped robot named Bobcat with a two-segment leg design and a directly actuated, single-joint spine design serves as a comparison robot, to study and compare the effect of the leg design on speed, while keeping the spine design fixed. Both proposed spine designs (single rotatory and active and multi-joint compliant) reach moderate, self-stable speeds.

Exciting Engineered Passive Dynamics in a Bipedal Robot

A common approach in designing legged robots is to build fully actuated machines and control the machine dynamics entirely in software, carefully avoiding impacts and expending a lot of energy. However, these machines are outperformed by their human and animal counterparts. Animals achieve their impressive agility, efficiency, and robustness through a close integration of passive dynamics, implemented through mechanical components, and neural control. Robots can benefit from this same integrated approach, but a strong theoretical framework is required to design the passive dynamics of a machine and exploit them for control. For this framework, we use a bipedal spring-mass model, which has been shown to approximate the dynamics of human locomotion. This paper reports the first implementation of spring-mass walking on a bipedal robot. We present the use of template dynamics as a control objective exploiting the engineered passive spring-mass dynamics of the ATRIAS robot. The results highlight the benefits of combining passive dynamics with dynamics-based control and open up a library of spring-mass model-based control strategies for dynamic gait control of robots.