An approach to the design of walking humanoid robots with different leg mechanisms or flexible feet and using dynamic gaits

This article describes a method for designing humanoid robots and generating their dynamic gaits. Firstly, the global design process which defines structures able to carry out dynamic locomotion tasks is explained. Secondly, a set of leg and foot mechanisms are described to perform these tasks. A method of producing intrinsic smooth motions for fast walking gaits of bipedal robots with different leg mechanisms or flexible feet is then explained. Finally, some simulation results are given, showing a wide variety of possibilities for dynamic gait generation. The contribution of flexibilities in the feet of a bipedal robot during a dynamic walk can be observed. The two major effects are a diminution of the intensity of normal force when the heel touches the ground and increased length of the double support phase, allowing better stability of the system. Another notable effect is the analogy between the passive flexion amplitude of the toe tips and the measured results of human subjects.