Stability Recognition with Active Vibration for Bracing Behaviors and Motion Extensions Using Environment in Musculoskeletal Humanoids

TL;DR

This paper introduces a method for musculoskeletal humanoids to recognize stability and extend motion range by actively vibrating body parts and utilizing environmental contact, inspired by human stabilization strategies.

Contribution

It presents a novel approach to stability recognition and motion extension in humanoids using active vibration sensing and environmental contact.

Findings

Effective stability recognition demonstrated on Musashi humanoid.

Enhanced motion range achieved through environmental bracing.

Vibration-based sensing proved reliable for stability assessment.

Abstract

Although robots with flexible bodies are superior in terms of the contact and adaptability, it is difficult to control them precisely. On the other hand, human beings make use of the surrounding environments to stabilize their bodies and control their movements. In this study, we propose a method for the bracing motion and extension of the range of motion using the environment for the musculoskeletal humanoid. Here, it is necessary to recognize the stability of the body when contacting the environment, and we develop a method to measure it by using the change in sensor values of the body when actively vibrating a part of the body. Experiments are conducted using the musculoskeletal humanoid Musashi, and the effectiveness of this method is confirmed.