Tetsuo Tawara

Design and construction of a series of compact humanoid robots and development of biped walk control strategies

Abstract Design and construction of compact body humanoid robots and various biped locomotion control strategies implemented onto them in the ESYS humanoid project at the Engineering Systems Laboratory are presented. Design concepts and hardware specifications of the constructed compact size humanoid robots from Mk.1 to Mk.5 are discussed. As for the biped walk control, four biped locomotion control strategies all of which have various advantages such as versatility, high-energy efficiency, smooth loading on hardware, and real-time gait generation, are proposed. 3D biped dynamic walking of the constructed humanoids is realized by implementing the proposed biped control strategies onto them. Results of evaluation experiments on the proposed control strategies are reported.

morph3: a compact-size humanoid robot system capable of acrobatic behavior

morph3 is a compact-size humanoid robot that is able to generate acrobatic motions such as somersaults and gymnastic motion. A new mechanism and control system, i. e. a real-time joint compliance control system and tactile sensing shells on its body, make acrobatic motion possible. In this paper, the design concepts and construction of morph3 are described.

Morph: A Desktop-Class Humanoid Capable of Acrobatic Behavior

A desktop class humanoid robot, morph3, developed for humanoid robotics is described. Consideration to body form is given in order to appeal to a general audience. 138 sensors such as accelerometers, rate gyros, pressure sensors, and force sensors are mounted on morph3. We describe the electrical network which is utilized on-board the humanoid body, and describe some advantages of the system. Actual dynamical behavior such as walking, turning, and motions using the whole-body is performed on the humanoid robot.