Towards An Adaptive Locomotion Strategy For Quadruped Rovers: Quantifying When To Slide Or Walk On Planetary Slopes

TL;DR

This paper investigates when quadruped planetary rovers should switch between walking and sliding to optimize energy efficiency and safety on steep, loose terrains, using simulations to identify threshold conditions.

Contribution

It introduces a method to quantify and compare the energy costs of walking versus sliding, enabling adaptive locomotion strategies for planetary exploration robots.

Findings

Identified CoT intersection points for walking and sliding on various slopes.

Demonstrated the potential for adaptive transition thresholds based on terrain conditions.

Provided initial simulation results guiding efficient rover locomotion strategies.

Abstract

Legged rovers provide enhanced mobility compared to wheeled platforms, enabling navigation on steep and irregular planetary terrains. However, traditional legged locomotion might be energetically inefficient and potentially dangerous to the rover on loose and inclined surfaces, such as crater walls and cave slopes. This paper introduces a preliminary study that compares the Cost of Transport (CoT) of walking and torso-based sliding locomotion for quadruped robots across different slopes, friction conditions and speed levels. By identifying intersections between walking and sliding CoT curves, we aim to define threshold conditions that may trigger transitions between the two strategies. The methodology combines physics-based simulations in Isaac Sim with particle interaction validation in ANSYS-Rocky. Our results represent an initial step towards adaptive locomotion strategies for planetary legged rovers.