Centipede robot for uneven terrain exploration: Design and experiment of the flexible biomimetic robot mechanism

Koh, Doo-Yeol; Yang, Jaemin; Kim, Soohyun

doi:10.1109/biorob.2010.5627776

Cited by 12 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…Myriapods, including millipedes, are studied in various fields such as biology [7][8][9][10][11][12], robotics [13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23], and mathematical modelling [19][20][21][22][23][24][25]. However, only a few studies focused on the decentralized control mechanism for interlimb coordination [19-21, 24, 25].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Decentralized control mechanism underlying interlimb coordination of millipedes

et al. 2017

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Legged animals exhibit adaptive and resilient locomotion through interlimb coordination. The long-term goal of this study is to clarify the relationship between the number of legs and the inherent decentralized control mechanism for interlimb coordination. As a preliminary step, the study focuses on millipedes as they represent the species with the greatest number of legs among various animal species. A decentralized control mechanism involving local force feedback was proposed based on the qualitative findings of behavioural experiments in which responses to the removal of part of the terrain and leg amputation were observed. The proposed mechanism was implemented in a developed millipede-like robot to demonstrate that the robot can adapt to the removal of the part of the terrain and leg amputation in a manner similar to that in behavioural experiments.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Decentralized control mechanism underlying interlimb coordination of millipedes

et al. 2017

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“…Hoffman and Wood (2011) showed that a passive undulatory gait increases the locomotion speed. Koh et al (2010) and Kinugasa et al (2017) demonstrated that multi-legged robots with a flexible body axis show high mobility in uneven terrain.…”

Section: Application To Legged Robotsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Generation of Direct-, Retrograde-, and Source-Wave Gaits in Multi-Legged Locomotion in a Decentralized Manner via Embodied Sensorimotor Interaction

Ambe

Aoi

Tsuchiya

et al. 2021

Front. Neural Circuits

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Multi-legged animals show several types of ipsilateral interlimb coordination. Millipedes use a direct-wave gait, in which the swing leg movements propagate from posterior to anterior. In contrast, centipedes use a retrograde-wave gait, in which the swing leg movements propagate from anterior to posterior. Interestingly, when millipedes walk in a specific way, both direct and retrograde waves of the swing leg movements appear with the waves' source, which we call the source-wave gait. However, the gait generation mechanism is still unclear because of the complex nature of the interaction between neural control and dynamic body systems. The present study used a simple model to understand the mechanism better, primarily how local sensory feedback affects multi-legged locomotion. The model comprises a multi-legged body and its locomotion control system using biologically inspired oscillators with local sensory feedback, phase resetting. Each oscillator controls each leg independently. Our simulation produced the above three types of animal gaits. These gaits are not predesigned but emerge through the interaction between the neural control and dynamic body systems through sensory feedback (embodied sensorimotor interaction) in a decentralized manner. The analytical description of these gaits' solution and stability clarifies the embodied sensorimotor interaction's functional roles in the interlimb coordination.

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“…Kano et al developed a millipede-like robot, where each segment consists of a trunk and two legs [15], and its leg device is a single-motor-driven system with closed-loop feedback. Koh et al proposed a modular robot inspired by millipedes [16], introducing the concept of a flexible body structure. The robot mimics the millipede's elongated body, flexible body structure, and undulating gait using a single motor and flexible transmission shaft to achieve open-loop gait control and flexible body structure.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Structural Design and Control Research of Multi-Segmented Biomimetic Millipede Robot

Yin,

Shi,

Liu

2024

Biomimetics

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Due to their advantages of good stability, adaptability, and flexibility, multi-legged robots are increasingly important in fields such as rescue, military, and healthcare. This study focuses on the millipede, a multi-segmented organism, and designs a novel multi-segment biomimetic robot based on an in-depth investigation of the millipede’s biological characteristics and locomotion mechanisms. Key leg joints of millipede locomotion are targeted, and a mathematical model of the biomimetic robot’s leg joint structure is established for kinematic analysis. Furthermore, a central pattern generator (CPG) control strategy is studied for multi-jointed biomimetic millipede robots. Inspired by the millipede’s neural system, a simplified single-loop CPG network model is constructed, reducing the number of oscillators from 48 to 16. Experimental trials are conducted using a prototype to test walking in a wave-like gait, walking with a leg removed, and walking on complex terrain. The results demonstrate that under CPG waveform input conditions, the robot can walk stably, and the impact of a leg failure on overall locomotion is acceptable, with minimal speed loss observed when walking on complex terrain. The research on the structure and motion control algorithms of multi-jointed biomimetic robots lays a technical foundation, expanding their potential applications in exploring unknown environments, rescue missions, agriculture, and other fields.

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Centipede robot for uneven terrain exploration: Design and experiment of the flexible biomimetic robot mechanism

Cited by 12 publications

References 6 publications

Decentralized control mechanism underlying interlimb coordination of millipedes

Decentralized control mechanism underlying interlimb coordination of millipedes

Generation of Direct-, Retrograde-, and Source-Wave Gaits in Multi-Legged Locomotion in a Decentralized Manner via Embodied Sensorimotor Interaction

Structural Design and Control Research of Multi-Segmented Biomimetic Millipede Robot

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