Measurement and control of attitudes of quadruped robots

Man and quadruped animals use various attitudes in walking or running. The reason for them to do so are that using various attitudes can increase speed of motion, keep balance of their bodies, save energy, be adaptable to environments. It is found that quadruped robot can simulate quadruped animals to use same attitudes and obtain same advantages. In this paper a definition of attitude of quadruped robots is given first. Then various attitudes used by quadruped robots in various gait and environments as well as their advantages are listed. A method which use inclination sensors and electronic compass to measure attitudes of quadruped robots is proposed. Finally a scheme to control attitudes of quadruped robots is presented and solutions of inverse kinematics of the robot are given, some experiments have already been made successfully. The use of attitude sensors greatly improves the intelligence level of walking robots and makes them have better properties