Development, Estimation and Control of a Bio-Inspired Quadruped Robotic Leg

This paper presents the design and control of a bioinspired robotic leg. The design is based on the basic locomotion requirements of mobile quadruped robots. We present the design and development of a bio-inspired quadruped robotic leg with integrated actuation and sensory systems. We first introduce the mechanical design concept of the actuator and leg components. Then, the kinematic model of a single three Degree of Freedom (DOF) leg is presented, establishes the description equation of the foot trajectory, and presents the development and control of a single lightweight low inertia leg. The proposed controller is a cascaded design of position controller, velocity controller, and current controller in order to track the desired path with different virtually compliant effects. The joint actuators were assembled into a leg prototype which is attached to a stand with a vertical linear sliding guide for experimental validation and testing. Results showed that the leg is able to achieve quarter gait trajectory tracking, vertical jumping and can hold weight up to 6.54 kg.