Paper:
Language: English:

Realization of Rapid Movement for Legged Entertainment Robots Using Two New Actuators, the Inertia Actuator and the Cam Charger

Amir Ali Forough Nassiraei^*,, Kazuo Ishii^, Seiji Masakado^, Takayuki Matsuo^, Kodai Ichikawa^, Hajime Fukushima^, Masayuki Murata^, Takashi Sonoda^, Isao Takahira^, and Tsutomu Miki^

^*FAIS-Robotics Development Support Office
Collaboration Center 4F, 2-1 Hibikino, Wakamatsu-ku, Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka 808-0196, Japan
^**Graduate School of Life Science and Systems Engineering, Kyushu Institute of Technology
2-4 Hibikino, Wakamatsu-ku, Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka 808-0196, Japan

Received: March 19, 2007

Accepted: May 24, 2007

Keywords: rapid motion, inertia actuator, cam charger, legged entertainment robot

Journal ref: Journal of Advanced Computational Intelligence and Intelligent Informatics, Vol.11, No.8 pp. 979-988, 2007

Abstract

We discuss the realization of rapid movement for legged entertainment robots using two new actuators, the Inertia Actuator and the Cam Charger. As an internal torque generator, the Inertia Actuator generates small internal torque by changing the rotor speed and large internal torque quickly by using a brake to stop the rotor at high speed. To realize jumping, we introduce the Cam Charger to fit to the robot foot. The key is to charge a series of strong torsion springs using a specially shaped cam. After detailing of the Cam Charger and the Inertia Actuator principles, we evaluate the feasibility of our approach through simulation. We show experimentally that our artistic “Jumping Joe” robot prototype including these two actuators demonstrates rapid movements such as fast wakeup, jumping, and somersaults.

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