Design of an Autonomous Fast-Walking Humanoid Robot

The design considerations for a small, relatively fast walking, autonomous humanoid robot are presented. The robot must be energy efficient but also produce sufficient torque to reach greater speeds. On the basis of previous investigations into gait optimization for multilegged systems, dynamical modeling and nonlinear optimization tools are used for design optimization and choosing the motor size and gear ratios. Gait trajectories for relatively fast steps and different prototypes were calculated. The design decisions are described for the humanoid robot with 6 degrees-of-freedom (DoF) in each leg and 2 DoF in each arm based on numerical results and preliminary investigations with a 4 DoF test robot.