A New Dynamic Energy Stability Margin for Walking Machines

Abstract

Previous work on the classification of stability criteria for walking machines reveals that there is no stability margin that accurately predicts robot stability when inertial and manipulation effects are significant. The use of an improper stability criterion yields unavoidable errors in the control of walking robots. Moreover, inertial and manipulation effects usually appear in the motion of these robots when the machines are used for services or industrial applications. A new stability margin that accurately measures robot stability considering dynamic effects arising during motion is proposed in this paper. The new stability margin is the optimum from the energy point of view. Numerical comparison has been conducted to support the margin’s suitability.