Dynamically diverse legged locomotion for rough terrain

In this video, we demonstrate the effectiveness of a kinodynamic planning strategy that allows a high-impedance quadruped to operate across a variety of rough terrain. At one extreme, the robot can achieve precise foothold selection on intermittent terrain. More surprisingly, the same inherently-stiff robot can also execute highly dynamic and underactuated motions with high repeatability. This range of dynamic motion is possible through careful reasoning about the coupled dynamics during underactuated phases of motion. Our results demonstrate visceral progress toward realization of one of the central theoretically claims giving legged locomotion a “leg-up” over wheeled robotics: that appropriate design of control can produce a set of capabilities which span a dynamic range from deliberate foothold selection through acrobatic-style motion on a single, particular robot.