Orientation Control System: Enhancing Aerial Maneuvers for Quadruped Robots.

Area of Science:

• Robotics
• Control Systems
• Mechanical Engineering

Background:

• Legged robots require aerial maneuvers to surmount obstacles impassable by standard gaits.
• Controlling robot orientation during aerial phases, where the Center of Mass is uncontrolled, presents a significant challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and evaluate an Orientation Control System (OCS) for legged robots to actively control orientation during aerial motions.
• To address the limited controllability over robot orientation during the flight phase of leaps.

Main Methods:

• Proposed an Orientation Control System (OCS) utilizing two actuated rotating masses (flywheels or reaction wheels).
• Designed the flywheels with incident axes of rotation for a compact system capable of controlling roll and pitch.
• Leveraged the principle of conservation of angular momentum to adjust rotational velocity and steer robot orientation.

Main Results:

• Demonstrated that the OCS can provide control authority over the robot's orientation during flight.
• Simulations on the Solo12 robot validated the system's capability to control roll and pitch angles, accounting for differing moments of inertia.
• The system enables orientation adjustments even without ground contact.

Conclusions:

• The proposed Orientation Control System (OCS) effectively enhances the maneuverability of legged robots during aerial motions.
• This technology offers a viable solution for improving obstacle traversal capabilities in legged robotics.
• The compact, dual-axis flywheel design provides robust orientation control for dynamic aerial maneuvers.