Locust-inspired miniature jumping robot

Jumping is one among successful locomotion gaits for small scale robots to overcome obstacles and traverse rough terrains. Design of a jumping robot features many engineering challenges; some of them may be solved by seeking inspiration and solutions in nature. This paper entails the conceptual and detailed design of TAUB, a miniature jumping robot whose design was inspired by the Desert Locust´s legs. The jumping mechanism consist a pair of legs each with two equal segments, mimicking the femur and tibia, joined by torsion springs, mimicking the Semi-Lunar Process (SLP) of the Locust´s legs. The jumping legs enable relatively large opening angle of 150 degrees, similar to the locust, allowing using softer springs and increase the energy storing and jumping performance. The 22.6 gr autonomous robot prototype constructed outperforms other existing robots, by jumping to a height of 3.1 m covering a distance of 3 m.