Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Biped walking on level ground with torso using only one actuator

  • Research Paper
  • Published:
Science China Information Sciences Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

It is well known that a biped robot needs actuators to walk stably on level ground. Till now, a biped robot with torso has needed at least two actuators to achieve this. Would it be possible for this kind of robot to walk on level ground with only one actuator? This paper responds in the affirmative and proposes a simple control strategy for a planar biped robot with torso. In this control method, there is only one low gain proportional-derivative (PD) controller between the torso and the stance leg, while the swing leg remains totally free. The PD controller utilizes states of both the torso (angle and angular velocity) and the stance leg. The numerical simulations show that, by adopting this controller, a planar biped robot with torso can walk stably on level ground, and that the robot can walk with a wide range of speeds and high energy efficiency by changing the control parameters. Four period-one gaits, one of which is stable while the other three are unstable, are found by simulations. According to the literature surveyed, we are the first to have a torso only driven biped robot walk stably on level ground.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. McGeer T. Passive dynamic walking. INT J Robot Res, 1990, 9: 62–82

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. McGeer T. Stability and control of two-dimensional biped walking. Technical Report CSS-IS TR 88-01, Simon Fraser University. 1988

    Google Scholar 

  3. McGeer T. Dynamics and control of bipedal locomotion. J Theor Biol, 1993, 163: 277–314

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Terumasa N, Masaki T, Kazuo Y. Numerical simulations of level ground walking based on passive walk for planar biped robots with torso by hip actuators. J Syst Des Dyn, 2008, 2: 463–474

    Google Scholar 

  5. Ambarish G, Bernard E, Ahmed K. Limit cycles in a passive compass gait biped and passivity-mimicking control laws. Auton Robots, 1997, 4: 273–286

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Spong M W, Bullo F. Controlled symmetries and passive walking. IEEE Trans Automat Contr, 2005, 50: 1025–1031

    Article  MathSciNet  Google Scholar 

  7. Fumihiko A, Minoru H, Norihiro K, et al. Extended virtual passive dynamic walking and virtual passivity-mimicking control laws. In: International Conference on Robotics and Automation, Seoul, 2001. 3139–3144

    Google Scholar 

  8. Fumihiko A, Masaki Y, Norihiro K, et al. A novel gait generation for biped walking robots based on mechanical energy constraint. IEEE Trans Robotic Autom, 2004, 20: 565–573

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Martijn W, Daan G E H, Arend L S, et al. Adding an upper body to passive dynamic walking robots by means of a bisecting hip mechanism. IEEE Trans Robot, 2007, 23: 112–123

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Gomes M W, Andy R. A walking model with no energy cost. Phys Rev E, 2011, 83: 032901

    Article  MathSciNet  Google Scholar 

  11. Howell G W, Baillieul J. Simple controllable walking mechanisms which exhibit bifurcations. In: IEEE Conference on Decision and Control, Tampa, 1998. 3027–3032

    Google Scholar 

  12. Narukawa T, Takahashi M, Yoshida K. Biped locomotion on level ground by torso and swing-leg control based on passive-dynamic walking. In: IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, Edmonton, 2005. 4009–4014

    Google Scholar 

  13. Masaki H, Masaki O, Koh H, et al. Yet another humanoid walking-passive dynamic walking with torso under simple control. In: International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, Hawaii, 2001. 259–264

    Google Scholar 

  14. Hobbelen D G E. Limit cycle walking. Dissertation for the Doctoral Degree. Delft: Delft University of Technology, 2008

    Google Scholar 

  15. Jesse W G, Gabriel A, Franck P. Asymptotically stable walking for biped robots: Analysis via systems with impulse effects. IEEE Trans Automat Contr, 2001, 46: 51–64

    Article  MATH  Google Scholar 

  16. Martijn W. Essentials of dynamic walking. Dissertation for the Doctoral Degree. Delft: Delft University of Technology, 2004

    Google Scholar 

  17. Ambarish G, Bernard E, Ahmed K. Limit cycles and their stability in a passive bipedal gait. In: International Conference on Robotics and Automation, Minneapolis, 1996. 246–251

    Google Scholar 

  18. Steve C, Andy R, Russ T, et al. Efficient bipedal robots based on passive-dynamic walkers. Science, 2005, 307: 1082–1085

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Intelligent Technology and Systems, Tsinghua National Laboratory for Information Science and Technology, Department of Computer Science and Technology, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China

    Shuai Feng & ZengQi Sun

  2. Beijing Institute of Control Engineering, Beijing, 100190, China

    Shuai Feng

  3. Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, College of Engineering, Sultan Qaboos Universit, Al-Khod, 123, P.O. Box 33, Sultanate of Oman

    S. Al Yahmadi Amur

Authors
  1. Shuai Feng
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. S. Al Yahmadi Amur
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. ZengQi Sun
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to ZengQi Sun.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Feng, S., Al Yahmadi Amur, S. & Sun, Z. Biped walking on level ground with torso using only one actuator. Sci. China Inf. Sci. 56, 1–9 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11432-013-5009-0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11432-013-5009-0

Keywords

Search

Navigation