A Study on Posture Control and Soft Landing of a Free Falling Robot. 3rd Report. Fall Experiment with Cat Turning Motion.

Abstract

The ROBOT CAT developed in this study is a kind of robot which can move in the air, and control its posture and perform soft landing. In the first report, the concept of the ROBOT CAT and its mechanism, actuator and control method were described. The ROBOT CAT executes so-called cat turning motion to control its posture in the air. The cat turning motion is 3D rotational motion of the kind a live cat perform when she is dropped upside down. The ROBOT CAT consists of a front and rear body and a flexible backbone connecting the two ends. The control method of the ROBOT CAT and the results of the free fall experiment are given in this paper. The cat turning motion was achieved with the robot in free fall. The experimental result indicates that all angular momentum of the robot was conserved throughout a fall.