A Biologically-Inspired Autonomous Robot
Abstract
The distributed nature of the stick insect leg coordination mechanisms permitted a straightforward implementation of reflexes for the negotiation of rough terrain in our second robot. Using a searching behavior based the work of Pearson and Franklin with the locust, the robot can also walk over slatted surfaces. Horizontal compliance was added to allow legs to comply with external disturbances by actively reducing the stiffness. In response to a sufficiently large horizontal disturbance, the legs exhibit a stepping behavior reminiscent of the stepping strategy reported by Zill in locust. In addition, when one leg of a walking robot is placed on a substrate that is stationary relative to the moving robot (so that it does not step), the remaining legs continue to step due to the distributed nature of the controller. This experiment is analogous to one performed on the stick insect by Cruse and colleagues.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 27, 1994
- Accession Number
- ADA289446
Entities
People
- Randall D. Beer
Organizations
- Case Western Reserve University