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Rigid-flexible coupling dynamic modeling and performance analysis of a bioinspired jumping robot with a six-bar leg mechanism

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Abstract

The rigid-flexible coupling structure of creatures with jumping ability has the advantages of high stiffness and good flexibility, which are of great significance to its research. However, existing research on jumping robots has not demonstrated the effect of multiflexibility links on the jumping performance. In this paper, a Watt-type one degree-of-freedom six-bar mechanism is regarded as research object. For a jumping leg including multiple flexible links and a flexible joint with a floating frame, a rigid-flexible coupling dynamic model is established with a pseudo-rigid-body model being used. On this basis, the effect of structural and installation parameters on the jumping performance is analyzed. Results show that different flexible links have distinct effects on the jumping performance, and properly reducing the stiffness of flexible links can improve the jumping performance. The results of this study provide a design basis for jumping robots with a rigid-flexible coupling structure.

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Abbreviations

l i :

Length of i-th link

m i :

Mass of i-th link

γ i/θ i/α i :

Angle between two adjacent links

θ Ri/θ Si/θ Ti :

Relative rotation angle of the adjacent equivalent rigid link of the flexible link

M i/F i :

Joint torque/force

F Ox/F Oy :

External force at the center of mass of the trunk

ψ0 :

Angle of the initial takeoff direction

K i :

Stiffness coefficient of the driving torsional spring

K Ri/K Si/K Ti :

Equivalent stiffness coefficient of the flexible link

h i :

Ordinate of the center of mass

E T :

Energy stored by the robot

ϕ i :

Angle between each link and the positive direction of xM axis

J i :

Moment of inertia

α t/β t/γ t :

Direction angles of the reference axis of the moment of inertia

v i :

Velocity of the center of mass

c i/c θ :

Damping coefficient of the equivalent torsion spring/driving torsional spring

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 51805010), General Project of Beijing Education Commission (Grant No. KM201910005032), and China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (Grant No. 2019T120030).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Materials and Manufacturing, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing, 100124, China

    Ziqiang Zhang, Lun Wang, Jinnong Liao, Jing Zhao & Qi Yang

Authors
  1. Ziqiang Zhang
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  2. Lun Wang
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  3. Jinnong Liao
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  4. Jing Zhao
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  5. Qi Yang
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ziqiang Zhang.

Additional information

Zhang Ziqiang is currently an Associate Professor at Faculty of Materials and Manufacturing, Beijing University of Technology, China. He received his Doctorate degree from Beihang University, China in 2017. His research interests include bioinspired robots.

Wang Lun is a Postgraduate student at Faculty of Materials and Manufacturing, Beijing University of Technology, China. He received his Bachelor’s degree from North China University of Technology, China in 2019. His research interests include bioinspired robots.

Liao Jinnong is an Undergraduate majoring in Mechanical Engineering. He was admitted to Faculty of Materials and Manufacturing, Beijing University of Technology in 2017. His research interests include bioinspired robots.

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Zhang, Z., Wang, L., Liao, J. et al. Rigid-flexible coupling dynamic modeling and performance analysis of a bioinspired jumping robot with a six-bar leg mechanism. J Mech Sci Technol 35, 3675–3691 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12206-021-0737-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12206-021-0737-3

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