Mobility and dynamic performance of legged robots

This article presents a method for describing the dynamic performance of a multi-legged locomotion robot. It involves examining how well the legged system uses ground contact to produce acceleration of its body; these abilities are referred to as its force and acceleration capabilities. These capabilities are bounded by actuator torque limits and the no-slip condition. The resulting analysis describes the maximum translational and rotational accelerations of the main-body that are guaranteed to be achievable in every direction without causing slipping at the contact points or saturating an actuator. The method is illustrated using a hexapod as an example.