Robo-Rats Locomotion: Quadruped

Quadruped locomotion is locomotion using four legs.  If done carefully, four-legged locomotion can be statically stable (foot placement is critical to maintain balance).  However, the hexapod design is more intrinsically stable and is therefore more commonly used for small, inexpensive robots.  Naturally, the complexity is greater since six legs are necessary instead of four, but the benefits outweigh the costs.

Below are two photos of the JROB-1 robot.  The quadruped locomotion system was developed by the Hirose Laboratory at the Tokyo Institute if Technology, the other components were designed and the complete robot was assembled at the Inoue-Inaba Laboratory at the University of Tokyo.  This quadruped design has been used extensively in Japan for robotics research.

Motors:

³ 2 per leg - Legs must pivot and be raised/lowered.  The above design uses 3 degrees-of-freedom per leg.

Pros:

Stability - Easier to implement static stability than on a biped.

Cons:

Stability - The hexapod design has better static stability--if you're going to use four legs, you might as well use six.

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Last modified: 04/04/01 22:30