Virtual Pivot Point Control for Running Robots

Virtual Pivot Point Control for Running Robots

Van Bommel, L.

Van der Helm, F.C.T. (mentor)

Mechanical, Maritime and Materials Engineering

BioMechanical Engineering

BMD-BR

2011-09-16

Keeping the torso of a running robot upright is a complex task, as the torso is subject to a multitude of forces throughout the running cycle. Often a PD-control scheme is used to keep the torso in the desired upright orientation. Recently, a new torso control scheme was introduced, called Virtual Pivot Point (VPP) control. The VPP-controller stabilises the torso by applying a hip torque such that the Ground Reaction Force (GRF) is directed at a fixed point on the torso. The objective of this simulation study is to compare the performance of the VPP-controller against the PD-controller. Performance is quantified by the maximum allowable disturbance for which the simulation model can continue running. Computationally demanding simulations are performed on a simple running model and accurate results are acquired on a realistic running model. Results show that PD control outperforms VPP control in all tested situations. In theory VPP control is promising, but its implementation needs improvement.

running robot
torso
CoM offset
Virtual Pivot

http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:11f0f72d-bd6b-4577-a0e1-8befd6c68142

2011-09-28

Student theses

master thesis

(c) 2011 Van Bommel, L.