Safety by a Sensor-Based Timely Perception: An Interdisciplinary Approach for Walking Robots

Introduction It is a difficult task for walking robots in unknown environments to maintain a safe system behaviour, in particular for walking robots with less than 6 legs on ground with different soil properties. To encounter the drawbacks [ID,KO] of mechanical approaches maintaining the problem of postural control, we propose a new biomechanical approach. The approach addresses difficult problems like breakthrough (fig.1) or sagging and supports walking by an intelligent way of control. Therefore interdisciplinary investigations in soil physics [HA], motion behaviour of vertebrates [SGS], and acoustics[SF] elucidate the area of interest. The following approach is based on these investigations and gives a better understanding of motion control. One step to control the interface between body and surface can be achieved by analysing characteristic data at specific events while acting on ground.