Abstract
Dynamics simulation is an important technique for hexapod robots. However, the realistic locomotion of a robot is comprehensive due to kinematics error, mechanism deformation, sinkage, slippage, and dragging of the feet on the ground. To investigate this phenomenon, this paper presents a kinematics and dynamics model of a hexapod robot to include this effect in dynamics simulation. The compliance of both the robot and terrain are taken into consideration. The total compliance matrix and compatibility equation are established with the consideration of the compliance of the legs, body, and terrain. The body of the robot is modeled to have a coupled compliance to consider the effect of all six legs. The theory of terramechanics is introduced to describe the constraint between the feet of the robot and terrain. The complete dynamics model of hexapodal walking is built on the foundation of the compliant kinematics model and foot-terrain interaction mechanics model. Numerical simulation and experiments are performed based on a bio-inspired hexapod robot. The simulation and experimental results indicate that the model can provide a reliable accuracy with only analytical and a priori data as inputs.
Similar content being viewed by others
Explore related subjects
Discover the latest articles, news and stories from top researchers in related subjects.Data Availability
The datasets used or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
Code Availability
The code used during the current study is available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
References
Tan, H., Zhang, H., Wang Y., Huang, Z., Li, L., Chen, X. Huang, T., Chen, X., Chen S.: Dynamics modeling and gait analysis of transport-oriented hexapod robot. In: Yan, L., Duan, H., Yu, X. (eds) Advances in guidance, navigation and control. Lecture notes in electrical engineering. 644. Springer, Singapore (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-8155-7_360
Yu, H., Gao, H., Deng, H.: Enhancing adaptability with local reactive behaviors for hexapod walking robot via sensory feedback integrated central pattern generator. Robot .Auton. Syst. 124, (2020). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.robot.2019.103401
Hu, N., Li, S., Zhu, Y., Gao, F.: Constrained model predictive control for a hexapod robot walking on irregular terrain. J. Intell. Robot. Syst. 94, 179–201 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10846-018-0827-3
Chen, G., Jin, B., Chen, Y.: Accurate position and posture control of a redundant hexapod robot. Arab J Sci Eng. 42, 2031–2042 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13369-017-2421-6
Yamile, X., Garcia-Murillo, M., Alberto, L., Castillo-Castane, E.: Kinematics of hex-piderix - a six-legged robot - using screw theory. Int. J. Adv. Robot. Syst. 10, (2013). https://doi.org/10.5772/53796
Wang, Z., Ding, X., Rovetta, A., Giusti, A.: Mobility analysis of the typical gait of a radial symmetrical six-legged robot. Mechatronics 21, 1133–1146 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mechatronics.2011.05.009
Ding, X., Yang, F.: Study on hexapod robot manipulation using legs. Robotica 34, 468–481 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1017/S0263574714001799
Bombled, Q., Verlinden, O.: Dynamic simulation of six-legged robots with a focus on joint friction. Multibody Sys.Dyn. 28, 395–417 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11044-012-9305-z
Pretorius, C.J., du Plessis, M.C., Gonsalves, J.W.: Evolutionary robotics applied to hexapod locomotion: a comparative study of simulation techniques. J. Intell. Robot. Syst. 96, 363–385 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10846-019-00989-0
Shih, L., Frank, A.A., Ravani, B.: Dynamic simulation of legged machines using a compliant joint model. Int. J. Robot. Res. 6, 33–46 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1177/027836498700600403
Zarrouk, D., Fearing, R. S.: Compliance-based dynamic steering for hexapods. IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems. 3093–3098 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1109/IROS.2012.6385663
Ganesh, K. K., Pushparaj, M. P.: Dynamic modelling & simulation of a four legged jumping robot with compliant legs.Robot. Auton. Syst. 61, 221–228 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.robot.2012.09.025
Chen, C., Zha, F., Guo, W., Li, Z., Sun, L., Shi, J.: Trajectory adaptation of biomimetic equilibrium point for stable locomotion of a large-size hexapod robot. Auton. Robot. 45, 155–174 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10514-020-09955-4
Roy, S.S., Pratihar, D.K.: Kinematics, dynamics and power consumption analyses for turning motion of a six-legged robot. J. Intell. Rob. Syst. 74, 663–688 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10846-013-9850-6
Waldron K.: Force and motion management in legged locomotion. IEEE J. Robot. Auto. 2, 214–220 (1986) https://doi.org/10.1109/JRA.1986.1087060
Ding, L., Gao, H., Deng, Z., Song, J., Liu, Y., Liu, G., Iagnemma, K.: Foot-terrain interaction mechanics for legged robots: Modeling and experimental validation. Int. J. Robot. Res. 32, 1585–1606 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1177/0278364913498122
Komizunai S., Konno A.,. Abiko S, Uchiyama M.: Development of a static sinkage model for a biped robot on loose soil. In: 2010 IEEE/SICE International Symposium on System Integration. pp. 61–66 (2010) https://doi.org/10.1109/SII.2010.5708302.
Comin, F. J., Saaj, C. M.: Models for slip estimation and soft terrain characterization with multilegged wheel–legs. IEEE Trans. Robot. 33, 1438–1452 (2017) https://doi.org/10.1109/TRO.2017.2723904
Mahapatra, A., Roy, S.S., Pratihar, D.K.: Study on feet forces’ distributions, energy consumption and dynamic stability measure of hexapod robot during crab walking. Appl. Math. Model. 65, 717–744 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apm.2018.09.015
Yang, C., Ding, L., Tang, D., Gao, H., Niu, L., Lan, Q., Li, C., Deng, Z.: Improved Terzaghi-theory-based interaction modeling of rotary robotic locomotors with granular substrates. Mech. Mach. Theory. 152 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mechmachtheory.2020.103901
Deblaise, D., Hernot, X., Maurine, P.: A systematic analytical method for PKM stiffness matrix calculation. in: Proceedings 2006 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, pp. 4213–4219 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1109/ROBOT.2006.1642350
Ding, X., Dai, J.: Compliance analysis of mechanisms with spatial continuous compliance in the context of screw theory and Lie groups. In: Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part C: Journal of Mechanical Engineering Science. Pp. 2493–2504 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1243/09544062JMES2095
Qi, P., Qiu, C., Liu, H., Dai, J., Seneviratne, L.D., Althoefer, K.: A novel continuum manipulator design using serially connected double-layer planar springs. IEEE/ASME Trans. Mechatron. 21, 1281–1292 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1109/TMECH.2015.2498738
Klimchik, A., Chablat, D., Pashkevich, A.: Stiffness modeling for perfect and non-perfect parallel manipulators under internal and external loadings. Mech. Mach. Theory 79, 1–28 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mechmachtheory.2014.04.002
Grizzle, J.W., Abba, G., Plestan, F.: Asymptotically stable walking for biped robots: analysis via systems with impulse effects. IEEE Trans. Autom. Control 46, 51–64 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1109/9.898695
Liang, S., Frank, A.A., Ravani, B.: Dynamic simulation of legged machines using a compliant joint model. Int. J. Robot. Res. 6, 33–36 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1177/027836498700600404
Hunt, K.H., Crossley, F.R.E.: Coefficient of restitution interpreted as damping in vibroimpact. J. Appl. Mech. 42, 440–445 (1975). https://doi.org/10.1115/1.3423596
Gao, H., Jin, M., Ding, L., Liu, Y., Li, W., Yu, X., Deng, Z., Liu, Z.: A real-time, high fidelity dynamic simulation platform for hexapod robots on soft terrain. Simul. Model. Pract. Theory 68, 125–145 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.simpat.2016.08.004
Kane, T. R.: Dynamics, theory and applications, McGraw-Hill (1985)
Acknowledgements
This study was supported in part by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (No. 2019YFB1309500, 2018YFB1306104), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 51822502, 91948202), Science and Technology Major Project of Anhui Province (202003a05020015), and the “111 Project” (Grant No. B07018).
Funding
This study was supported in part by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (No. 2019YFB1309500, 2018YFB1306104), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 51822502, 91948202), Science and Technology Major Project of Anhui Province (202003a05020015), and the “111 Project” (Grant No. B07018).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by Ma Jin, Liang Ding, Haibo Gao and Pinjia Zhang. Experiments were conducted by Ma Jin and Yang Su. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Ma Jin and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Ethics Approval
Not applicable.
Consent to Participate
Not applicable.
Consent for Publication
Not applicable.
Conflicts of Interest/Competing Interests
The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare that are relevant to the content of this article.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
About this article
Cite this article
Jin, M., Ding, L., Gao, H. et al. Dynamics Modeling and Simulation of a Hexapod Robot with a Focus on Trajectory Prediction. J Intell Robot Syst 108, 8 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10846-023-01839-w
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10846-023-01839-w