Biped locomotion methodologies applied to humanoid robotics

Controlling a biped robot with several degrees of freedom is a challenging task that takes the attention of several researchers in the fields of biology, physics, electronics, computer science and mechanics. For a humanoid robot to perform in complex environments, fast, stable and adaptable behaviors are required. Developing robust behaviors requires the development of methods for joint trajectory planning and lowlevel control. Several methods are part of the state of the art, including trajectory-based methods, virtual model control, passive-dynamic walking and central pattern generators. This paper proposes a solution for automatic generation of a walking gait using genetic algorithms. The experimental results are shown in terms of the evolution of the ground projection of the center of mass, walking velocity and average oscillation of torso. Genetic algorithms proved to be a powerful method for automatic generation of humanoid behaviors. The robot was able to reach a walk forward velocity of 0.51m/s which is a good result considering the results of the three best teams of RoboCup 3D simulation league for the same movement.