Omnidirectional Walking Mechanism. 2nd Report. Inclination Control while Walking on Rough Terrain.

Abstract

This paper proposes an inclination control algorithm of the Omnidirectional Walking Mechanism, which consists of a parallel link mechanism connecting two frames with three linear actuators and six elastic legs. The relative position and angle of the frames are selected arbitrarily by three actuators. Walking motion is produced by combining them with extendable legs. The ground is not always flat, and many different levels and obstacles exist, so posture control is essential for robot-labor. Posture of the robot can be controlled by changing the lengths of the legs referring data from inclination sensors. We constructed an experimental prototype model, and used the above method to control the inclination of the upper surface of the prototype model. The performance was investigated in terms of motion in every direction and over steps, and as a result of the experiments, it is confirmed that this robot can walk in all directions and can walk on a gentle slope by controlling the inclination of the upper surface.