3LP: a linear 3D-walking model including torso and swing dynamics

In this paper, we present a new model of biped locomotion which is composed of three linear pendulums (one per leg and one for the whole upper body) to describe stance, swing and torso dynamics. In addition to double support, this model has different actuation possibilities in the swing hip and stance ankle which could be widely used to produce different walking gaits. Without the need for numerical time-integration, closed-form solutions help finding periodic gaits which could be simply scaled in certain dimensions to modulate the motion online. Thanks to linearity properties, the proposed model can provide a computationally fast platform for model predictive controllers to predict the future and consider meaningful inequality constraints to ensure feasibility of the motion. Such property is coming from describing dynamics with joint torques directly and therefore, reflecting hardware limitations more precisely, even in the very abstract high level template space. The proposed model produces human-like torque and ground reaction force profiles and thus, compared to point-mass models, it is more promising for precise control of humanoid robots. Despite being linear and lacking many other features of human walking like CoM excursion, knee flexion and ground clearance, we show that the proposed model can predict one of the main optimality trends in human walking, i.e. nonlinear speed-frequency relationship. In this paper, we mainly focus on describing the model and its capabilities, comparing it with human data and calculating optimal human gait variables. Setting up control problems and advanced biomechanical analysis still remain for future works.Comment: Journal paper under revie

Asymptotically Stable Walking of a Five-Link Underactuated 3D Bipedal Robot

This paper presents three feedback controllers that achieve an asymptotically stable, periodic, and fast walking gait for a 3D (spatial) bipedal robot consisting of a torso, two legs, and passive (unactuated) point feet. The contact between the robot and the walking surface is assumed to inhibit yaw rotation. The studied robot has 8 DOF in the single support phase and 6 actuators. The interest of studying robots with point feet is that the robot's natural dynamics must be explicitly taken into account to achieve balance while walking. We use an extension of the method of virtual constraints and hybrid zero dynamics, in order to simultaneously compute a periodic orbit and an autonomous feedback controller that realizes the orbit. This method allows the computations to be carried out on a 2-DOF subsystem of the 8-DOF robot model. The stability of the walking gait under closed-loop control is evaluated with the linearization of the restricted Poincar\'e map of the hybrid zero dynamics. Three strategies are explored. The first strategy consists of imposing a stability condition during the search of a periodic gait by optimization. The second strategy uses an event-based controller. In the third approach, the effect of output selection is discussed and a pertinent choice of outputs is proposed, leading to stabilization without the use of a supplemental event-based controller

Quasi optimal sagittal gait of a biped robot with a new structure of knee joint

The design of humanoid robots has been a tricky challenge for several years. Due to the kinematic complexity of human joints, their movements are notoriously difficult to be reproduced by a mechanism. The human knees allow movements including rolling and sliding, and therefore the design of new bioinspired knees is of utmost importance for the reproduction of anthropomorphic walking in the sagittal plane. In this article, the kinematic characteristics of knees were analyzed and a mechanical solution for reproducing them is proposed. The geometrical, kinematic and dynamic models are built together with an impact model for a biped robot with the new knee kinematic. The walking gait is studied as a problem of parametric optimization under constraints. The trajectories of walking are approximated by mathematical functions for a gait composed of single support phases with impacts. Energy criteria allow comparing the robot provided with the new rolling knee mechanism and a robot equipped with revolute knee joints. The results of the optimizations show that the rolling knee brings a decrease of the sthenic criterion. The comparisons of torques are also observed to show the difference of energy distribution between the actuators. For the same actuator selection, these results prove that the robot with rolling knees can walk longer than the robot with revolute joint knees.ANR R2A

Gait-Behavior Optimization Considering Arm Swing and Toe Mechanisms for Biped Robot on Rough Road

芝浦工業大学2019年

Imprecise dynamic walking with time-projection control

We present a new walking foot-placement controller based on 3LP, a 3D model of bipedal walking that is composed of three pendulums to simulate falling, swing and torso dynamics. Taking advantage of linear equations and closed-form solutions of the 3LP model, our proposed controller projects intermediate states of the biped back to the beginning of the phase for which a discrete LQR controller is designed. After the projection, a proper control policy is generated by this LQR controller and used at the intermediate time. This control paradigm reacts to disturbances immediately and includes rules to account for swing dynamics and leg-retraction. We apply it to a simulated Atlas robot in position-control, always commanded to perform in-place walking. The stance hip joint in our robot keeps the torso upright to let the robot naturally fall, and the swing hip joint tracks the desired footstep location. Combined with simple Center of Pressure (CoP) damping rules in the low-level controller, our foot-placement enables the robot to recover from strong pushes and produce periodic walking gaits when subject to persistent sources of disturbance, externally or internally. These gaits are imprecise, i.e., emergent from asymmetry sources rather than precisely imposing a desired velocity to the robot. Also in extreme conditions, restricting linearity assumptions of the 3LP model are often violated, but the system remains robust in our simulations. An extensive analysis of closed-loop eigenvalues, viable regions and sensitivity to push timings further demonstrate the strengths of our simple controller

Push recovery with stepping strategy based on time-projection control

In this paper, we present a simple control framework for on-line push recovery with dynamic stepping properties. Due to relatively heavy legs in our robot, we need to take swing dynamics into account and thus use a linear model called 3LP which is composed of three pendulums to simulate swing and torso dynamics. Based on 3LP equations, we formulate discrete LQR controllers and use a particular time-projection method to adjust the next footstep location on-line during the motion continuously. This adjustment, which is found based on both pelvis and swing foot tracking errors, naturally takes the swing dynamics into account. Suggested adjustments are added to the Cartesian 3LP gaits and converted to joint-space trajectories through inverse kinematics. Fixed and adaptive foot lift strategies also ensure enough ground clearance in perturbed walking conditions. The proposed structure is robust, yet uses very simple state estimation and basic position tracking. We rely on the physical series elastic actuators to absorb impacts while introducing simple laws to compensate their tracking bias. Extensive experiments demonstrate the functionality of different control blocks and prove the effectiveness of time-projection in extreme push recovery scenarios. We also show self-produced and emergent walking gaits when the robot is subject to continuous dragging forces. These gaits feature dynamic walking robustness due to relatively soft springs in the ankles and avoiding any Zero Moment Point (ZMP) control in our proposed architecture.Comment: 20 pages journal pape