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Human-tracking strategies for a six-legged rescue robot based on distance and view

  • Mechanism and Robotics
  • Published:
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Abstract

Human tracking is an important issue for intelligent robotic control and can be used in many scenarios, such as robotic services and human-robot cooperation. Most of current human-tracking methods are targeted for mobile/tracked robots, but few of them can be used for legged robots. Two novel human-tracking strategies, view priority strategy and distance priority strategy, are proposed specially for legged robots, which enable them to track humans in various complex terrains. View priority strategy focuses on keeping humans in its view angle arrange with priority, while its counterpart, distance priority strategy, focuses on keeping human at a reasonable distance with priority. To evaluate these strategies, two indexes(average and minimum tracking capability) are defined. With the help of these indexes, the view priority strategy shows advantages compared with distance priority strategy. The optimization is done in terms of these indexes, which let the robot has maximum tracking capability. The simulation results show that the robot can track humans with different curves like square, circular, sine and screw paths. Two novel control strategies are proposed which specially concerning legged robot characteristics to solve human tracking problems more efficiently in rescue circumstances.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Mechanical System and Vibration, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China

    Yang Pan, Feng Gao, Chenkun Qi & Xun Chai

Authors
  1. Yang Pan
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  2. Feng Gao
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  3. Chenkun Qi
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  4. Xun Chai
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Feng Gao.

Additional information

Supported by National Basic Research Program of China(973 Program, Grant No. 2013CB035501)

Biographical notes

PAN Yang, born in 1988, is currently a post-doctor at State Key Laboratory of Mechanical System and Vibration, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China. His research interests include design and control of legged robots.

GAO Feng, born in 1956, is currently a professor at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China. His main research interests include parallel robots, design theory and its applications, large scale and heavy payload manipulator design, large scale press machine design and optimization, design and manufactory of nuclear power equipment, legged robots design and control.

QI Chenkun, born in 1978, is currently an assistant researcher at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China. His main research interests include industrial process modeling and control, system identification modeling and control of distributed parameter systems modeling, control of robotics and intelligent learning.

CHAI Xun, born in 1990, is currently a PhD candidate at State Key Laboratory of Mechanical System and Vibration, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China. His research interest is visual control of legged robots.

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Pan, Y., Gao, F., Qi, C. et al. Human-tracking strategies for a six-legged rescue robot based on distance and view. Chin. J. Mech. Eng. 29, 219–230 (2016). https://doi.org/10.3901/CJME.2015.1212.146

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.3901/CJME.2015.1212.146

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