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Complex Systems Science in Biomedicine pp 827–836Cite as

A Biologically Inspired Approach Toward Autonomous Real-World Robots

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Abstract

We present an approach inspired by biological principles to design the control system for an eight-legged walking robot. The approach is based on two biological control primitives: central pattern generators and coupled reflexes. By using these mechanisms we can achieve omnidirectional walking and smooth gait transitions in a high-degree-of-freedom (14) walking machine. Additionally, the approach allows us to freely mix rhythmic activity with posture changes of the robot without reducing forward speed. This approach has proved to be extremely successful on rough terrain and has been evaluated in real-world tests over a variety of different substrates.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Computer Science, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany

    Frank Kirchner & Dirk Spenneberg

Authors
  1. Frank Kirchner
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  2. Dirk Spenneberg
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Frank Kirchner .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Harvard-MIT (HST) Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, East Bldg. 149, 13th Street, Charlestown, MA, 02129

    Thomas S. Deisboeck M.D. (Assistant Professor of Radiology (HMS, MGH, HST) and Director, Complex Biosystems Modeling Laboratory) (Assistant Professor of Radiology (HMS, MGH, HST) and Director, Complex Biosystems Modeling Laboratory)

  2. Dept. of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Drexel Univ. College of Medicine, 215 N. 15th Street, MS# 111, Philadelphia, PA, 19102-1192

    J. Yasha Kresh Ph.D., F.A.C.C. (Professor, Research Director, Professor of Medicine and Director) (Professor, Research Director, Professor of Medicine and Director)

  3. Cardiovascular Biophysics, Drexel Univ. College of Medicine, 215 N. 15th Street, MS# 111, Philadelphia, PA, 19102-1192

    J. Yasha Kresh Ph.D., F.A.C.C. (Professor, Research Director, Professor of Medicine and Director) (Professor, Research Director, Professor of Medicine and Director)

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Kirchner, F., Spenneberg, D. (2006). A Biologically Inspired Approach Toward Autonomous Real-World Robots. In: Deisboeck, T.S., Kresh, J.Y. (eds) Complex Systems Science in Biomedicine. Topics in Biomedical Engineering International Book Series. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-33532-2_35

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