Joint Positions and Robot Stability of the Omnidirectional Crawling Quadruped Robot

Abstract

Determination of joint positions, judgment of robot stability, and selection of the consequential swing leg are keys to crawling control for quadruped robots. We derive an efficient way to obtain actuation variables of joint positions to satisfy the gait for quadruped robots. By defining the statically stable area for foot placement, a new approach on analysis of robot stability is presented. Unlike conventionally, we avoid solving complicated direct robot kinematics as an overall kinematic chain and simultaneously show information on robot stability and the stable range of foot placement. Effectiveness is shown in practical crawling experiments.