科创中国

Quadruped robots consume a lot of energy,which is one of the factors restricting their application.Energy efficiency is one of the key evaluating indicators for walking robots.The relationship between energy and elastic elements of walking robots have been studied,but different walking gait patterns and contact status have important influences on locomotion energy efficiency,and the energy efficiency considering the foot-end trajectory has not been reported.Therefore,the energy consumption and energy efficiency of quadruped robot with trot gait and combined cycloid foot trajectory are studied.The forward and inverse kinematics of quadruped robot is derived.The combined cycloid function is proposed to generate horizontal and vertical foot trajectory respectively,which can ensure the acceleration curve of the foot-end smoother and more successive,and reduce the contact force between feet and environment.Because of the variable topology mechanism characteristic of quadruped robot,the leg state is divided into three different phases which are swing phase,transition phase and stance phase during one trot gait cycle.The non-continuous variable constraint between feet and environment of quadruped robot is studied.The dynamic model of quadruped robot is derived considering the variable topology mechanism characteristic,the periodic contact and elastic elements of the robot.The total energy consumption of walking robot during one gait cycle is analyzed based on the dynamic model.The specific resistance is used to evaluate energy efficiency of quadruped robot.The calculation results show the relationships between specific resistance and gait parameters,which can be used to determine the reasonable gait parameters.

Existing biped robots mainly fall into two categories: robots with left and right feet and robots with upper and lower feet. The load carrying capability of a biped robot is quite limited since the two feet of a walking robot supports the robot alternatively during walking. To improve the load carrying capability, a novel biped walking robot is proposed based on a 2-UPU+2-UU parallel mechanism. The biped walking robot is composed of two identical platforms(feet) and four limbs, including two UPU(universal-prismatic-universal serial chain) limbs and two UU limbs. To enhance its terrain adaptability like articulated vehicles, the two feet of the biped walking robot are designed as two vehicles in detail. The conditions that the geometric parameters of the feet must satisfy are discussed. The degrees-of-freedom of the mechanism is analyzed by using screw theory. Gait analysis, kinematic analysis and stability analysis of the mechanism are carried out to verify the structural design parameters. The simulation results validate the feasibility of walking on rugged terrain. Experiments with a physical prototype show that the novel biped walking robot can walk stably on smooth terrain. Due to its unique feet design and high stiffness, the biped walking robot may adapt to rugged terrain and is suitable for load-carrying.