State Key Laboratory of Mechanical System and Vibration, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China

 

Regarding walking robots, biomimetic design has attracted a great deal of attention. Currently, studies have focused mainly on performance analysis and the design of some specific biomimetic walking robots. However, the systematic type synthesis of bionic quadruped robots has seldom been studied. In this paper, a new approach to type synthesis for quadruped walking robots is proposed based on the generalized function (GF) set theory. The current types of typical walking robots are analyzed using the GF set theory. The research status and existing problems are investigated. The skeletal systems of quadruped mammals are analyzed. The motion characteristics of all joints of quadruped mammals are denoted by GF sets. A process of conversion from biological types to serial, parallel and hybrid types is proposed. Limb types in serial, parallel and hybrid topology are synthesized. Finally the quadruped robots with serial, parallel and hybrid topology are produced. Two of these types have been successfully used for the design of walking rescue robots that is suitable for responding to nuclear accidents.

 

Keywords

type synthesis; bionic design; quadruped robot; parallel mechanism; GF set

 

Full text is available at  http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1672652914601438