A brainstem-like modulation approach for gait transition in a quadruped robot

Authors:
Vítor Matos;Cristina P. Santos;Carla M. A. Pinto
Affiliations:
Industrial Electronics Department, School of Engineering, University of Minho, Guimaraes, Portugal;Industrial Electronics Department, School of Engineering, University of Minho, Guimaraes, Portugal;Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto, Centro de Matemática da Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
Venue:
IROS'09 Proceedings of the 2009 IEEE/RSJ international conference on Intelligent robots and systems
Year:
2009

Citing 2
Cited 2

Adaptive Dynamic Walking of a Quadruped Robot on Natural Ground Based on Biological Concepts

International Journal of Robotics Research
Head motion stabilization during quadruped robot locomotion: combining dynamical systems and a genetic algorithm

ICRA'09 Proceedings of the 2009 IEEE international conference on Robotics and Automation

Gait transition and modulation in a quadruped robot: A brainstem-like modulation approach

Robotics and Autonomous Systems
CPG modulation for navigation and omnidirectional quadruped locomotion

Robotics and Autonomous Systems

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Abstract

The ability to traverse a wide variety of terrains while walking is basically a requirement for performing useful tasks in our human centric world. In this article, we propose a bio-inspired robotic controller able to generate locomotion and to easily switch between different type of gaits. In order to improve the robot stability and response while locomoting, we adjust both the duty factor and the interlimb phase relationships, according to the velocities. We extend previous work, by applying nonlinear oscillators to generate the rhythmic locomotor movements for a quadruped robot, similarly to the biological counterparts. The generated trajectories are modulated by a drive signal, that modifies the oscillator frequency, amplitude and the coupling parameters among the oscillators, proportionally to the drive signal strength. By increasing the drive signal, locomotion can be elicited and velocity increased while switching to the appropriate gaits. This drive signal can be specified according to sensory information or set a priori. The implementation of the central pattern generator network and the activity modulation layer is shown in simulation and in an AIBO robot.