Device for absorbing floor-landing shock for legged mobile robot

• US 20050120820A1
• Filed: 12/11/2002
• Published: 06/09/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 12/25/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Yoshiike, Takahide, Hamaya, Kazushi, Gomi, Hiroshi, Akimoto, Kazushi, Matsumoto, Takashi, Yokoyama, Taro, Takenaka, Toru, Nishimura, Yoichi, Takemura, Yoshinari
• Granted Patent: US 7,378,811 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 74/490
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 19/0091 Shock absorbers in general F16F
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 57/02 with ground-engaging propulsion means, e.g. walking members
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 57/032 with alternately or sequentially lifted supporting base and legs; with alternately or sequentially lifted feet or skid B62D57/024 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F16F 15/023 using fluid means
• CPC Class Codes: F16F 9/0481 provided in an opening to the exterior atmosphere
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 74/20299 Antirattling elements

Abstract

A landing shock absorbing device 18 disposed in a foot mechanism 6 of a leg of a robot, wherein an inflatable bag-like member 19 (variable capacity element) is provided at a bottom face side of the foot mechanism 6. The bag-like member 19 is constructed of an elastic material such as rubber. The air in atmosphere may flow into and out of the bag-like member 19 by inflow/outflow means 20 equipped with a solenoid valve 27, and the like. In a lifting state of the foot mechanism 6, inflow of the air into the bag-like member 19 is controlled, thereby controlling the final height of the bag-like member 19 in an inflated state to the height in response to a gait type of the robot. While properly reducing an impact load during a landing motion of the leg of a legged mobile robot depending on the gait type of the robot, stability of a posture of the robot may easily be secured, resulting in allowing a configuration to be lighter in weight.

Claims

1. A landing shock absorbing device of legged mobile robot moving by lifting and landing motions of a plurality of legs that can make contact with the ground though a ground-contacting face portion of a foot mechanism, respectively, the landing shock absorbing device comprising:

a variable capacity element provided in the foot mechanism of each leg, each variable capacity element being compressed by undergoing a floor reaction force during the landing motion of an associated leg and being inflatable when no longer undergoing the floor reaction force at least by the lifting motion of the associated leg, thereby allowing fluid to flow into the variable capacity element with the inflation thereof and to flow out of an interior portion of the variable capacity element with the compression thereof, and

an inflow/outflow means for communicating the fluid into the variable capacity element while inflating the variable capacity element in a lifting state of the associated leg and for communicating the fluid out of the variable capacity element with the compression of the variable capacity element caused by the floor reaction force,

wherein outflow resistance is generated during the outflow of the compressible fluid in the variable capacity element by the inflow/outflow means,

the landing shock absorbing device comprising inflation control means for controlling an inflow amount of the fluid into the variable capacity element by the inflow/outflow means depending on the gait type to change a size of the variable capacity element in a compression direction to become a predetermined size depending on a gait type of the legged mobile robot, when the variable capacity element is inflated in the lifting state of the associated leg.

2. The landing shock absorbing device according to claim 1, wherein the fluid comprises a compressible fluid.

3. The landing shock absorbing device according to claim 2, wherein the legged mobile robot comprises a robot in which a position and a posture of the foot mechanism are controlled by compliance control so as to allow a moment about an axis in a horizontal direction for the floor reaction force acting on the foot mechanism of each leg to follow a predetermined desired moment.

4. The landing shock absorbing device according to claim 1, wherein the variable capacity element is constructed of a deformable bag-like member provided on a bottom face side of the foot mechanism of the associated leg to make contact with the ground ahead of the ground-contacting face portion of the foot mechanism of the associated leg during the landing motion of said associated leg.

5. The landing shock absorbing device according to claim 1, wherein the inflation control means judges whether a size of the variable capacity element in a compression direction is inflated to a predetermined size based on inflow time of the fluid into the variable capacity element in the lifting state of the associated leg, and when the size of the variable capacity element is judged to be inflated to the predetermined size, blocks the inflow of the fluid into the variable capacity element by the inflow/outflow means.

6. The landing shock absorbing device according to claim 1, further comprising a sensor for detecting a physical quantity that varies depending on a size of the variable capacity element in the compression direction, wherein the inflation control means judges whether the size of the variable capacity element in the compression direction is inflated to a predetermined size based on detection data of the sensor, and when the size of the variable capacity element in the compression direction is judged to be inflated to the predetermined size, blocks the inflow of the fluid into the variable capacity element by the inflow/outflow means.

7. The landing shock absorbing device according to claim 1, further comprising a sensor for detecting whether or not the foot mechanism of each of the legs is in contact with the ground, wherein the inflation control means controls the inflow of the fluid into the variable capacity elements associated with each of the legs by the inflow/outflow means to increase the size of the variable capacity elements in the compression direction, when a ground-contact of the foot mechanism is not detected by the sensor at a planned time for landing each leg defined depending on desired gaits of the legged mobile robot.

8. The landing shock absorbing device according to claim 1, further comprising a sensor for detecting a size of the variable capacity element in the compression direction, wherein the inflation control means sets a time-varying pattern of a desired size of the variable capacity element in the compression direction depending on the gait type of the legged mobile robot at a time that the variable capacity element is inflated, and controls the inflow and the outflow of the fluid of the variable capacity element by the inflow/outflow means such that the size of the variable capacity element in the compression direction detected by the sensor is changed according to the time-varying pattern of the desired size.