Explosive Electric Actuator and Control for Legged Robots
Unmanned systems such as legged robots require fast-motion responses for operation in complex environments. These systems therefore require explosive actuators that can provide high peak speed or high peak torque at specific moments during dynamic motion. Although hydraulic actuators can provide a l...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2022-05-01
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| Series: | Engineering |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2095809921005282 |
| _version_ | 1811295024869015552 |
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| author | Fei Meng Qiang Huang Zhangguo Yu Xuechao Chen Xuxiao Fan Wu Zhang Aiguo Ming |
| author_facet | Fei Meng Qiang Huang Zhangguo Yu Xuechao Chen Xuxiao Fan Wu Zhang Aiguo Ming |
| author_sort | Fei Meng |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Unmanned systems such as legged robots require fast-motion responses for operation in complex environments. These systems therefore require explosive actuators that can provide high peak speed or high peak torque at specific moments during dynamic motion. Although hydraulic actuators can provide a large force, they are relatively inefficient, large, and heavy. Industrial electric actuators are incapable of providing instant high power. In addition, the constant reduction ratio of the reducer makes it difficult to eliminate the tradeoff between high speed and high torque in a given system. This study proposes an explosive electric actuator and an associated control method for legged robots. First, a high-power-density variable transmission is designed to enable continuous adjustment of the output speed to torque ratio. A heat-dissipating structure based on a composite phase-change material (PCM) is used. An integral torque control method is used to achieve periodic and controllable explosive power output. Jumping experiments are conducted with typical legged robots to verify the effectiveness of the proposed actuator and control method. Single-legged, quadruped, and humanoid robots jumped to heights of 1.5, 0.8, and 0.5 m, respectively. These are the highest values reported to date for legged robots powered by electric actuators. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T05:26:19Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0da560c5ade0402bafd214c9b2fdedf9 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2095-8099 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T05:26:19Z |
| publishDate | 2022-05-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Engineering |
| spelling | doaj.art-0da560c5ade0402bafd214c9b2fdedf92022-12-22T03:00:34ZengElsevierEngineering2095-80992022-05-01123947Explosive Electric Actuator and Control for Legged RobotsFei Meng0Qiang Huang1Zhangguo Yu2Xuechao Chen3Xuxiao Fan4Wu Zhang5Aiguo Ming6School of Mechatronical Engineering, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, ChinaBeijing Advanced Innovation Center for Intelligent Robots and Systems, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China; Key Laboratory of Biomimetic Robots and Systems, Ministry of Education, Beijing 100081, China; Corresponding authors.School of Mechatronical Engineering, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China; Corresponding authors.Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Intelligent Robots and Systems, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, ChinaBeijing Advanced Innovation Center for Intelligent Robots and Systems, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, ChinaBeijing Advanced Innovation Center for Intelligent Robots and Systems, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, ChinaDepartment of Mechanical and Intelligent Systems Engineering, The University of Electro-Communications, Tokyo 182-8585, JapanUnmanned systems such as legged robots require fast-motion responses for operation in complex environments. These systems therefore require explosive actuators that can provide high peak speed or high peak torque at specific moments during dynamic motion. Although hydraulic actuators can provide a large force, they are relatively inefficient, large, and heavy. Industrial electric actuators are incapable of providing instant high power. In addition, the constant reduction ratio of the reducer makes it difficult to eliminate the tradeoff between high speed and high torque in a given system. This study proposes an explosive electric actuator and an associated control method for legged robots. First, a high-power-density variable transmission is designed to enable continuous adjustment of the output speed to torque ratio. A heat-dissipating structure based on a composite phase-change material (PCM) is used. An integral torque control method is used to achieve periodic and controllable explosive power output. Jumping experiments are conducted with typical legged robots to verify the effectiveness of the proposed actuator and control method. Single-legged, quadruped, and humanoid robots jumped to heights of 1.5, 0.8, and 0.5 m, respectively. These are the highest values reported to date for legged robots powered by electric actuators.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2095809921005282Electric actuatorVariable transmissionIntegral torque controlLegged robot |
| spellingShingle | Fei Meng Qiang Huang Zhangguo Yu Xuechao Chen Xuxiao Fan Wu Zhang Aiguo Ming Explosive Electric Actuator and Control for Legged Robots Engineering Electric actuator Variable transmission Integral torque control Legged robot |
| title | Explosive Electric Actuator and Control for Legged Robots |
| title_full | Explosive Electric Actuator and Control for Legged Robots |
| title_fullStr | Explosive Electric Actuator and Control for Legged Robots |
| title_full_unstemmed | Explosive Electric Actuator and Control for Legged Robots |
| title_short | Explosive Electric Actuator and Control for Legged Robots |
| title_sort | explosive electric actuator and control for legged robots |
| topic | Electric actuator Variable transmission Integral torque control Legged robot |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2095809921005282 |
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