Multilegged matter transport: A framework for locomotion on noisy landscapes

Abstract

Whereas the transport of matter by wheeled vehicles or legged robots can be guaranteed in engineered landscapes such as roads or rails, locomotion prediction in complex environments such as collapsed buildings or crop fields remains challenging. Inspired by the principles of information transmission, which allow signals to be reliably transmitted over “noisy” channels, we developed a “matter-transport” framework that demonstrates that noninertial locomotion can be provably generated over noisy rugose landscapes (heterogeneities on the scale of locomotor dimensions). Experiments confirm that sufficient spatial redundancy in the form of serially connected legged robots leads to reliable transport on such terrain without requiring sensing and control. Further analogies from communication theory coupled with advances in gaits (coding) and sensor-based feedback control (error detection and correction) can lead to agile locomotion in complex terradynamic regimes.

Influence of the frequency on undulatory swimming speed in granular media

“…Finally, it is worth mentioning that the findings uncovered in this study may contribute to the development of new robots capable of moving in granular environments. Being able to navigate efficiently through such challenging terrains opens up possibilities for applications in fields such as search and rescue operations, 31 environmental monitoring, 32 exploration of planetary surfaces with loose soil or sand, 33 and even tasks in industrial settings where granular materials are involved. The insights gained from understanding the dynamics of locomotion in granular media could significantly enhance the design and performance of these robotic systems, ultimately advancing their effectiveness and versatility in real-world scenarios.…”

Self-Configurable Centipede-Inspired Rescue Robot

“…Each section of the robot has four feet, labeled as foot 1, 2, 3, and 4. Following the observation of quadruped robots and animals' gaits, a diagonal gait is adopted for forward movement [63]. As shown in Figure 6, in this gait, two feet opposite each other on the diagonal touch the ground simultaneously.…”

Classification and performance evaluation of simultaneous multithreaded architectures

“…Let us define the shapes at any τ as α τ -thus, at τ = 0 and τ = π the shapes are α 0 and α π as shown in the figure . During the first half of the gait cycle, [0, π) the forward path is executed and is shown with a red trace to denote the stance phase, β = 1 or S 12 contact submanifold. During the second half of the gait cycle, [π, 2π) the return path retraces the forward path and returns to the initial condition through the swing phase, β = 0 or S ∅ 9 . Using (13), the gait cycle ϕ can be succinctly represented using flow notation:…”

“…−gA 12 ∆α F dk (23) 9 Firstly, in the S ∅ contact submanifold, the return path is not restricted to the shape change basis generated in (12) and thus can take any path backward. But, in order to generate a net displacement description we reverse the forward path in the second half of the gait cycle (π ≤ τ < 2π).…”

“…Based on the locomotion constraint, the ensuing map from the shape velocity to the Lie-algebra of the position space is called the local connection. Furthermore, if one considers periodic body deformation trajectories or periodic gaits 2 in the shape space, a common choice for biological [7] and robotic systems [8,9], the net displacement of the system can be estimated through the generalized Stokes' Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the any funding agency. This work is partially funded through grants from the Paul M. Rady Mechanical Engineering Department (startup to K.J.)…”