Bipedal hopping is an efficient form of locomotion, yet it remains relatively rare in the natural world. Previous research has suggested that the tail balances the angular momentum of the legs to produce steady state bipedal hopping. In this study, we employ a 3D physics simulation engine to optimize gaits for an animat whose control and morphological characteristics are subject to computational evolution, which emulates properties of natural evolution. Results indicate that the order of gene fixation during the evolutionary process influences whether a bipedal hopping or quadrupedal bounding gait emerges. Furthermore, we found that in the most effective bipedal hoppers the tail balances the angular momentum of the torso, rather than the legs as previously thought. Finally, there appears to be a specific range of tail masses, as a proportion of total body mass, wherein the most effective bipedal hoppers evolve.

中文翻译：

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通过计算进化探索双足跳跃

双足跳跃是一种有效的运动形式，但它在自然界中仍然相对罕见。先前的研究表明，尾部平衡腿的角动量以产生稳定状态的双足跳跃。在这项研究中，我们采用 3D 物理模拟引擎来优化动物的步态，其控制和形态特征受计算进化的影响，模拟自然进化的特性。结果表明，进化过程中基因固定的顺序会影响双足跳跃或四足跳跃步态的出现。此外，我们发现在最有效的双足跳跃者中，尾巴平衡躯干的角动量，而不是之前认为的腿。最后，似乎有一个特定范围的尾部质量，