Control of Bipedal Walking Exploiting Postural Reflexes and Passive Dynamics

Compared to human locomotion capabilities, today’s bipedal robots are still lacking in efficiency, velocity, and robustness. Thus, a control concept for dynamic walking based on insights into human motion control is suggested. Key features include the exploitation of passive dynamics, no usage of a full dynamic model, and hierarchical, distributed control. Walking robustness in presence of unknown disturbances is increased by the action of local and postural reflexes. The approach is validated on a physically simulated anthropomorphic biped with 21 DoFs and compliant actuation. Results show an efficient, fluent, and fast walking gait that can cope with considerable disturbances.