Component Modularized Design of Musculoskeletal Humanoid Platform Musashi to Investigate Learning Control Systems

TL;DR

This paper presents the modular design and development of Musashi, a musculoskeletal humanoid platform with flexible, reconfigurable components, enabling investigation of learning control systems through various experiments.

Contribution

It introduces a modular, reconfigurable musculoskeletal humanoid platform, Musashi, with joint and muscle modules, facilitating research in learning control systems.

Findings

Successful development of Musashi platform components

Verification of platform's effectiveness through experiments

Demonstrated potential for learning control research

Abstract

To develop Musashi as a musculoskeletal humanoid platform to investigate learning control systems, we aimed for a body with flexible musculoskeletal structure, redundant sensors, and easily reconfigurable structure. For this purpose, we develop joint modules that can directly measure joint angles, muscle modules that can realize various muscle routes, and nonlinear elastic units with soft structures, etc. Next, we develop MusashiLarm, a musculoskeletal platform composed of only joint modules, muscle modules, generic bone frames, muscle wire units, and a few attachments. Finally, we develop Musashi, a musculoskeletal humanoid platform which extends MusashiLarm to the whole body design, and conduct several basic experiments and learning control experiments to verify the effectiveness of its concept.