Small-Sized Reconfigurable Quadruped Robot With Multiple Sensory Feedback for Studying Adaptive and Versatile Behaviors

Abstract

Self-organization of locomotion characterizes the feature of automatically spontaneous gait generation without preprogrammed limb movement coordination. To study this feature in quadruped locomotion, we propose here a new open-source, small-sized reconfigurable quadruped robot, called Lilibot, with multiple sensory feedback and its physical simulation. Lilibot was designed as a friendly quadrupedal platform with unique characteristics, including light weight, easy handling, modular components, and multiple real-time sensory feedback. Its modular components can be flexibly reconfigured to obtain features, such as different leg orientations for testing the effectiveness and generalization of self-organized locomotion control. Its multiple sensory feedback (i.e., joint angles, joint velocities, joint currents, joint voltages, and body inclination) can support vestibular reflexes and compliant control mechanisms for body posture stabilization and compliant behavior, respectively. To evaluate the performance of Lilibot, we implemented our developed adaptive neural controller on it. The experimental results demonstrated that Lilibot can autonomously and rapidly exhibit adaptive and versatile behaviors, including spontaneous self-organized locomotion (i.e., adaptive locomotion) under different leg orientations, body posture stabilization on a tiltable plane, and leg compliance for unexpected external load compensation. To this end, we successfully developed an open-source, friendly, small-sized, and lightweight quadruped robot with reconfigurable legs and multiple sensory feedback that can serve as a generic quadrupedal platform for research and education in the fields of locomotion, vestibular reflex-based, and compliant control.