JP2001129775A - Robot and gravity center position control method for robot - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To set a gravity center position suitable for cooperative exercise of the whole body of a robot. SOLUTION: This human type robot generally comprises lower limbs for executing leg type movement, and an upper body disposed above the lower limbs. The upper body is classified into a truck connected with the lower limbs through a hip joint, upper limbs and a head. As a driving battery for driving at least one part of the robot, a relatively heavy battery pack comprising nickel type battery cells capable of supplying inrush current of actuators is used. By installing the battery pack to the upper body, the gravity center position of the whole robot is shifted upward to regard the whole robot as an inverted pendulum, so that a dynamic walking control of the robot is easily performed. By installing the battery pack movably in the Z-axis direction, the gravity center position adjustable to various exercise patterns can be set.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a mechanism of a realistic robot having a structure imitating the mechanism and operation of a living body, and more particularly to an upright walking type body mechanism and operation of, for example, a human or a monkey. The present invention relates to a mechanism of a legged mobile robot having a structure.

More specifically, the present invention provides a leg-type movement by bipedal upright walking, and a trunk, an upper limb,
Upright walking with a so-called upper body such as the head
The present invention relates to the mechanism of a legged mobile robot, and more particularly, to a mechanism of an upright walking / legged mobile robot capable of setting a suitable center of gravity position in a walking motion and other whole body cooperative motion including a trunk and an upper limb. .

[0003]

2. Description of the Related Art The origin of a robot is ROBO in Slavic language.
It is said to be derived from TA (slave machine). In Japan, robots began to spread in the late 1960's, but most of them were based on automation of production work in factories.
Industrial robots such as manipulators and transfer robots for the purpose of unmanned operation
ot).

Recently, research and development on legged mobile robots that imitate the body mechanisms and movements of animals such as humans and monkeys that walk upright on two legs have progressed, and expectations for their practical use have increased. Leg-based movement by two-legged upright is unstable compared to crawler-type or four-legged or six-legged type, making posture control and walking control difficult, but flexible walking and running operations such as climbing stairs and climbing over obstacles. It is excellent in that it can be realized.

[0005] The legged mobile robot has a history of starting from research on legged movement using only the lower limbs as an elemental technology, instead of a form equipped with all five standing bodies.

For example, Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 3-184772 discloses a joint structure applied to a structure corresponding to a structure below a trunk of a legged walking robot.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-305579 discloses a walking control device for a legged mobile robot. The walking control device described in the publication is a ZMP (Zer
o Moment Point), that is, control is performed so that a point on the floor at which the moment due to the floor reaction force when walking becomes zero coincides with the target value. However, as can be seen from FIG. 1 described in the publication, the body 24 acting a moment is formed as a black box, and not all five bodies are in a completed state. Stay.

However, it is needless to say that the ultimate purpose of the legged mobile robot is not limited to the walking motion by the lower limb alone, but also to realize various motion patterns of a whole body emphasized type by a structure having five complete bodies. That is, an upright gait with two legs is performed by a structure including a lower limb that walks on two legs, an upper limb including an arm, and a trunk connecting the lower limb and the upper limb. The robot with five completed bodies is premised on upright and leg-type moving work using two feet, and in each scene, posture stabilization control is performed so that the upper limb, lower limb, and trunk are operated cooperatively according to a predetermined priority order. There is a need.

[0009] A legged mobile robot emulating human body mechanisms and movements is referred to as a "humanoid",
Or a "humanoid" robot (humanoid r)
obot). The humanoid robot can perform, for example, life support, that is, support of human activities in various situations in a living environment and other daily lives.

The significance of researching and developing a humanoid or a robot called a humanoid can be understood from, for example, the following two viewpoints.

One is a human science perspective. That is, through the process of creating a robot having a structure similar to a human lower limb and / or upper limb, devising a control method thereof, and simulating a human walking motion, a mechanism of natural human motion such as walking can be achieved. Can be elucidated by engineering. These findings could be greatly reduced to the development of other research fields dealing with human movement mechanisms, such as ergonomics, rehabilitation engineering, or sports science.

The other is the development of a robot that, as a human partner, supports living activities, that is, supports human activities in various situations in a living environment and other daily lives. In various aspects of a human living environment, this type of robot needs to learn from humans how to adapt to humans or environments with different personalities while learning from humans, and further grow in terms of functionality. At this time, it is considered that the robot having the “human form”, that is, the same shape or the same structure as a human, functions effectively in performing smooth communication between the human and the robot.

For example, when teaching a robot on-the-spot how to pass through a room while avoiding obstacles that cannot be stepped on, the partner to be taught, such as a crawler type or quadruped type robot, has a completely different structure from itself. A biped robot with the same appearance should be much easier to teach, and it should be easier for the robot to learn (for example, Takanishi, "Control of Biped Robots").
(Japan Society of Automotive Engineers of Japan Kanto Branch <High Plastics> No. 25, 1996
APRIL)). In the first place, most of the human living environment is formed according to the form and behavior style of human beings, so having a humanoid form of the robot enhances the affinity with the human living environment It can be said that it is essential above.

One of the uses of the humanoid robot is to represent various difficult tasks in industrial activities and production activities. For example, maintenance work in nuclear power plants, thermal power plants, petrochemical plants, transport and assembly of parts in manufacturing factories, cleaning in high-rise buildings, rescue work in fire spots and other dangerous and difficult tasks, etc. . However, the realization of a specific application or function of this type of robot specialized in industrial use is the ultimate theme in design and manufacture. It is not always necessary to faithfully reproduce the physical mechanisms and movements of a walking animal as mechanical devices. For example, the degree of freedom of the hands and the movement functions are strengthened to realize a specific application, while the degrees of freedom of the head and the waist, which are relatively low in the application, are limited or omitted. As a result, the appearance of the work and operation of the robot may be unnatural as a human even in the case of bipedal walking, but such a point has to be compromised.

[0015] Further, as another application of the humanoid robot,
Rather than living support such as substituting for difficult work, there are applications that are closely related to life, that is, "symbiosis" with humans. The ultimate purpose of this type of robot is to faithfully reproduce the whole body cooperative movement mechanism inherent to animals that walk upright on two legs, such as humans and monkeys, and realize its natural smooth operation. I do. In addition, it is desirable that the expressiveness of the movement using the limbs be rich as long as the animal erects a highly intelligent upright animal such as a human or a monkey. Furthermore, not only do the operation patterns input in advance be faithful, but also the words and attitudes of the opponent (such as “praise” or “scold”
It is also required to realize lively motion expression in response to "hitting". In this sense, entertainment robots that imitate humans are exactly what we call “humanoid robots”.

As is well known, the human body has hundreds of joints or hundreds of degrees of freedom. In order to give the legged mobile robot an action as close as possible to a human, it is preferable to give almost the same degree of freedom, but this is technically very difficult. It is necessary to arrange at least one actuator for each degree of freedom. However, mounting hundreds of actuators on a mechanical device such as a robot requires weight and weight in terms of manufacturing cost. It is almost impossible from a design point of view such as size. Also, if the degree of freedom is large, the amount of calculation for position / motion control, attitude stabilization control, and the like increases exponentially. For this reason, it is common to construct a humanoid robot with several tens of degrees of freedom of joint, which is much smaller than that of a human body. Therefore, how to achieve a more natural motion using a small number of degrees of freedom is one of the important issues in designing and controlling a humanoid robot.

A legged mobile robot that walks two feet upright is excellent in that it can realize flexible walking and running operations (for example, going up and down stairs and climbing over obstacles), but has a high center of gravity. Therefore, posture control and stable walking control become difficult by that much. In particular, in the case of a living-type robot, the posture and stable walking must be controlled while richly expressing natural movements and emotions of intelligent animals such as humans and monkeys. Most of emotional expressions by movement use the upper body such as the upper limb and the head, and the position of the center of gravity of the robot during the movement period dynamically fluctuates.

There have already been proposed a number of techniques relating to posture control and stable walking for a robot of the type that performs legged movement by bipedal walking. Stable "walk" here means
It could be defined as moving with the legs without falling. During walking, gravity, inertial force, and these moments act on the road surface from the walking system due to gravity and acceleration generated by the walking motion. According to the so-called "Dalambert principle", they balance the floor reaction force and the floor reaction force moment as a reaction from the road surface to the walking system. As a consequence of the mechanical inference, there is a point where the pitch and roll axis moments are zero on or inside the sides of the supporting polygon formed by the sole and the road surface, that is, "ZMP (Zero Moment Point)".

Many proposals relating to stable walking of a robot use this ZMP as a criterion for determining walking stability. The bipedal walking pattern generation based on the ZMP standard has advantages such that the sole landing point can be set in advance, and it is easy to consider the kinematic constraint condition of the toe according to the road surface shape.

For example, the legged mobile robot described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-305579 is designed to perform stable walking by matching a point on the floor where ZMP becomes zero with a target value.

Further, in the legged mobile robot described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 5-305581, the ZMP is provided at least from the inside of the supporting polyhedron (polygon) or from the end of the supporting polyhedron (polygon) when landing or leaving the floor. It was configured to be at a position having a predetermined margin. As a result, there is room for the ZMP for a predetermined distance even when a disturbance or the like is received, and walking stability can be improved.

Further, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. Hei 5-305558 discloses that the walking speed of a legged mobile robot is controlled by a ZMP target position. That is, the legged mobile robot described in the publication uses the previously set walking pattern data, drives the leg joints so that the ZMP matches the target position, detects the inclination of the upper body, and The discharge speed of the walking pattern data set according to the detected value is changed. As a result, when the robot leans forward on unexpected irregularities, for example, the posture can be recovered by increasing the discharge speed.
Further, since the ZMP can be controlled to the target position, there is no problem even if the discharge speed is changed during the two-leg supporting period.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-305585 discloses that the landing position of a legged mobile robot is controlled by a ZMP target position. That is, the legged mobile robot described in the publication detects a deviation between the ZMP target position and the actually measured position, and drives one or both of the legs so as to eliminate the deviation. Then, a stable walking is performed by detecting the moment and driving the legs so that the moment becomes zero.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. Hei 5-305586 discloses that the inclination posture of a legged mobile robot is controlled by a ZMP target position. That is, the legged mobile robot described in the publication detects a moment around the ZMP target position, and when a moment is generated, drives the legs so that the moment becomes zero to perform stable walking. It has become.

In consideration of stable walking control of a bipedal walking robot, whether the operation performed by the robot is “static walking” in which the center of gravity of the robot is always in the ground contact area of the sole during walking,
Alternatively, it is an important issue whether it is “dynamic walking” in which the center of gravity of the robot is out of the sole. That is, 2
When the foot-walking robot walks stably, the center of gravity of the system needs to be placed on the sole of the supporting leg if the walking is static. In the dynamic walking, for example, if the control method uses ZMP as a stable walking norm, it is necessary to control the ZMP to follow a target trajectory.

In the former case of the quiet walking, since the robot's center of gravity is required to be within the ground contact area of the sole during walking, a heavy object among the components of the robot is arranged as low as possible to lower the position of the center of gravity. This facilitates stable walking control. On the other hand, in the latter case of dynamic walking, the concept of a so-called “inverted pendulum” is introduced. The inverted pendulum can achieve a posture recovery by strongly accelerating the support point in the falling direction. In the walking system, this corresponds to strongly accelerating the target ZMP in the falling direction. In the case of performing the inverted pendulum control, it is advantageous to stabilize the walking control when the position of the center of gravity of the robot is rather high because the time from the loss of the balance of the center of gravity to the fall, that is, the period of the inverted pendulum is long.

By the way, since the robot is composed of an actuator having a large torque-to-weight ratio and a relatively lightweight structural member, most of the mass is concentrated on the actuator.
Needless to say, each actuator corresponds to the degree of freedom of the joint of the robot, and its installation location is almost fixed and cannot be used for adjusting the position of the center of gravity.

Components that are installed in the system system independently of the structure of the robot include, for example, a control board for controlling the drive of the actuator, and a power supply for supplying power to various electric systems such as the actuator and the control board. Is mentioned.

The control board is usually provided by Intel Corporation
CPU such as “Pentium” (Central Pr
(Processing Unit) chip, a memory chip, and a “motherboard” mounted with other main circuit components of a computer are used. The motherboard weighs at most a few hundred grams and does not contribute much to adjusting the center of gravity.

On the other hand, the power supply device is different in weight depending on whether it depends on an AC power supply (general commercial power supply) or a self-sustaining drive type using a battery. In the former case, since circuit components such as an orthogonal transformer and a transformer are mounted on substantially one printed wiring board, a heavy object that determines the position of the center of gravity of the entire robot is not formed. On the other hand, in the latter case, since the power supply device includes ten to several tens of battery cells, it may be a heavy object that determines the position of the center of gravity of the entire robot. In particular, since an excessive inrush current is required at the time of initial driving of the actuator, a nickel-cadmium battery having a large instantaneous supply current is superior to a lithium-ion battery having a high weight energy density. Power supplies using nickel-cadmium batteries
It has a weight of several kilograms. This accounts for about 10 to 20% of the weight of the small bipedal walking robot.

In the case of a self-drive type using a battery, the physical radius of movement of the humanoid robot is not restricted by the power cable, and can walk freely. Also,
At the time of walking and other various exercises including the upper limb, it is not necessary to consider the interference between the upper limb and the lower limb of the robot and the power cable, and the motion control is facilitated.

[0032]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an excellent legged mobile robot having a structure simulating an upright walking type body mechanism or operation of, for example, a human or a monkey.

A further object of the present invention is to carry out leg-type movement by bipedal upright walking and to mount a so-called upper body such as a trunk, an upper limb, and a head on a lower limb, and to perform a walking motion and other body movements. An object of the present invention is to provide an excellent upright walking / legged mobile robot capable of setting a suitable center of gravity position during a whole-body cooperative exercise including a trunk and upper limbs.

[0034]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in consideration of the above problems, and has a first aspect including at least a lower limb and an upper body disposed above the lower limb. A robot movable by the movement of the lower limb, wherein a heavy object which affects the position of the center of gravity of the entire robot is displaceably mounted on the upper body.

A second aspect of the present invention comprises at least a lower limb and an upper body disposed above the lower limb,
A robot movable by the movement of the lower limbs, capable of supplying drive power for driving at least a part of the robot, and having a weight that influences the position of the center of gravity of the entire robot; And a power supply mounting means for displaceably mounting the power supply means to the upper body.

In the robot according to the second aspect of the present invention, the power supply means includes, for example, one or more nickel-based battery cells. The nickel-based battery refers to, for example, a nickel-cadmium battery or a nickel-metal hydride battery. Although this type of nickel-based battery has a low weight energy density (that is, has a relatively large weight), it has an output characteristic capable of supplying an inrush current and is suitable for driving an actuator.

The power supply attaching means is adapted to displaceably attach the power supply means, that is, the battery pack, to at least one of the yaw axis and the roll axis of the robot. Here, the yaw axis is the Z axis. By moving the installation position of the battery pack as a heavy object upward, the robot can be regarded as an inverted pendulum. The inverted pendulum can achieve a posture recovery by strongly accelerating the support point in the falling direction. In the walking system, this corresponds to strongly accelerating the target ZMP in the falling direction.

Further, a third aspect of the present invention comprises at least a lower limb and an upper body disposed above the lower limb,
A robot movable by the movement of the lower limbs, wherein a drive battery for driving at least a part of the robot is attached to the upper body, thereby moving the center of gravity of the entire robot upward. Robot.

Further, a fourth aspect of the present invention comprises at least a lower limb and an upper body disposed above the lower limb,
A method of controlling the position of the center of gravity for a robot movable by the movement of the lower limb, comprising: (a) setting the position of the center of gravity of at least one of the Z-axis direction and the X-axis direction of the robot; Setting a desired whole body movement pattern; (c) calculating a whole body movement pattern of the robot based on the desired whole body movement pattern; and (d) calculating the calculated whole body movement pattern with the desired whole body movement pattern. Determining the set position of the center of gravity as an optimum position of the center of gravity when the error of the robot is within an allowable range.

The method of controlling the position of the center of gravity of a robot according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is the method of controlling the center of gravity of the robot when the calculated whole-body movement pattern is out of an allowable range from the target whole-body movement pattern. The method may further include resetting the position and recalculating the whole body movement pattern.

Further, the robot has a heavy object which affects the position of the center of gravity of the entire robot displaceably attached to the body, and forms the optimum position of the center of gravity determined in the step (d). The attachment position of the heavy object may be determined.

Further, the robot can supply a driving power for driving at least a part of the robot, and has a power source having a weight that influences the position of the center of gravity of the entire robot; And a power supply mounting means for movably mounting the power supply means on the upper body, wherein a mounting position of the power supply means by the power supply mounting means is determined so as to form an optimum center of gravity determined in the step (d). You may.

[0043]

The humanoid robot is generally composed of a lower limb for performing legged movement and an upper body disposed above the lower limb. The upper body is further divided into a trunk connecting the lower limbs and the hip joint, an upper limb, and a head.

As a driving power supply for driving at least a part of the robot, a battery pack composed of a nickel-based battery cell capable of supplying an inrush current of an actuator is used. Occupies about 10 to 20% of the total weight of the small robot.

By attaching such a battery pack to the upper body of the robot instead of the lower limbs, the position of the center of gravity of the entire robot is moved upward, and dynamic walking control regarded as an inverted pendulum is facilitated. The posture can be recovered by strongly accelerating the support point in the falling direction). Further, by variably attaching the battery pack in the Z-axis direction, it is possible to set and reset the position of the center of gravity adapted to various exercise patterns such as walking, running, and dancing.

Still other objects, features and advantages of the present invention are:
It will become apparent from the following more detailed description based on the embodiments of the present invention and the accompanying drawings.

[0047]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIGS. 1 and 2 show the humanoid or humanoid robot 100 used in the embodiment of the present invention viewed from the front and the rear, respectively. Further, FIG. 3 schematically shows the configuration of the degrees of freedom of the joints included in the humanoid robot 100.

As shown in FIG. 3, the humanoid robot 100
Is composed of an upper body including two arms and a head 1, a lower limb including two legs for realizing a movement operation, and a trunk connecting the upper limb and the lower limb.

The neck joint supporting the head 1 includes a neck joint yaw axis 2, a neck joint pitch axis 3, and a neck joint roll axis 4.
It has a degree of freedom.

Each arm has a shoulder joint pitch axis 8, a shoulder joint roll axis 9, an upper arm yaw axis 10, an elbow joint pitch axis 11, a forearm yaw axis 12, a wrist joint pitch axis 13,
It is composed of a wrist joint roll shaft 14 and a hand 15. The hand portion 15 is actually a multi-joint / multi-degree-of-freedom structure including a plurality of fingers. However, the operation of the hand part 15 is
Since there is little contribution or influence on the posture control and the walking control of 0, in this specification, it is assumed that the degree of freedom is zero. Therefore,
Each arm has seven degrees of freedom.

The trunk has three degrees of freedom: a trunk pitch axis 5, a trunk roll axis 6, and a trunk yaw axis 7.

Each leg constituting the lower limb has a hip joint yaw axis 16, a hip joint pitch axis 17, a hip joint roll axis 18, a knee joint pitch axis 19, and an ankle joint pitch axis 2.
0, a yawning joint roll shaft 21, and a foot (sole) 22. Hip pitch axis 17 and hip roll axis 1
The intersection of 8 defines the hip joint position of the robot 100 according to the present embodiment. The human foot (sole) 22
Although the actual structure is a structure including a sole with multiple joints and multiple degrees of freedom, the sole of the humanoid robot 100 according to the present embodiment has zero degrees of freedom. Therefore, each leg has six degrees of freedom.

To summarize the above, the total of the humanoid robot 100 according to the present embodiment is 3 + 7 × 2 + 3 +
It will have 6 × 2 = 32 degrees of freedom. However, the humanoid robot 100 for entertainment is not necessarily limited to 32 degrees of freedom. It goes without saying that the degree of freedom, that is, the number of joints, can be appropriately increased or decreased in accordance with design and manufacturing constraints, required specifications, and the like.

The degrees of freedom of the humanoid robot 100 as described above are actually implemented using actuators. It is preferable that the actuator is small and lightweight in view of requirements such as removing excess swelling on the appearance to approximate the human body shape and performing posture control on an unstable structure called bipedal walking. . In this embodiment,
A small AC servo actuator that is directly connected to the gear and built into the motor unit with the servo control system integrated into one chip is mounted. Note that this type of AC
The servo actuator is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Patent Application No. 11-33386 already assigned to the present applicant.

FIG. 4 schematically shows a control system configuration of the humanoid robot 100. As shown in the figure,
The humanoid robot 100 includes each of the mechanical units 30, 40, 50 R / L, and 60 R / L representing human limbs, and a control unit 80 that performs adaptive control for realizing a cooperative operation between the mechanical units. (However, each of R and L is a suffix indicating each of right and left. The same applies hereinafter).

The operation of the entire humanoid robot 100 is totally controlled by the control unit 80. The control unit 80 has a CPU (Central Process)
ngUnit) A main control unit 81 including main circuit components (not shown) such as a chip and a memory chip.
And a peripheral circuit 82 including an interface (not shown) for transmitting and receiving data and commands to and from the power supply device and each component of the robot 100.

In this embodiment, the power supply device is the robot 10
It has a configuration (not shown in FIG. 4) including a battery for independently driving 0. If it is a self-sustaining drive type, the physical radius of action of the humanoid robot 100 is not restricted by the power cable, and can walk freely. In addition, it is not necessary to consider the interference with the power cable during various exercises including walking and other upper limbs,
Operation control becomes easy.

In this embodiment, the battery is constituted by a nickel-cadmium battery cell capable of supplying an inrush current to each of the actuators A ₂ , A ₃ .
For this reason, the power supply device occupies about 10 to 20% of the entire robot 100.

The point that the position of the center of gravity of the robot 100 is set in the upper body by disposing the power supply device, which is a heavy object, in the upper body of the robot 100, that is, above the hip joint is particularly noteworthy. This is because, during an operation such as dynamic walking, the structure of the robot 100 can be controlled as a so-called inverted pendulum. The inverted pendulum can achieve a posture recovery by strongly accelerating the support point in the falling direction. In the walking system, this corresponds to strongly accelerating the target ZMP in the falling direction. In the case of performing the inverted pendulum control, it is advantageous to stabilize the walking control when the position of the center of gravity of the robot is rather high because the time from the loss of the balance of the center of gravity to the fall, that is, the period of the inverted pendulum is long.

Each joint degree of freedom in the robot 100 shown in FIG. 3 is realized by a corresponding actuator. That is, the head unit 30 includes a neck joint yaw axis actuator A ₂ , a neck joint pitch axis actuator A ₃ that expresses each of the neck joint yaw axis 2, the neck joint pitch axis 3, and the neck joint roll axis 4, and the neck joint roll. axis actuator A ₄ is disposed.

The trunk unit 40 includes a trunk pitch axis actuator A ₅ , a trunk roll axis actuator A ₆ , and a trunk pitch axis actuator A ₅ representing each of the trunk pitch axis 5, the trunk roll axis 6, and the trunk yaw axis 7. trunk yaw axis actuator A ₇ is deployed.

The arm unit 50R / L is subdivided into an upper arm unit 51R / L, an elbow joint unit 52R / L, and a forearm unit 53R / L. 9, upper arm yaw axis 10, elbow joint pitch axis 11, elbow joint roll axis 12, wrist joint pitch axis 1
3. Shoulder joint pitch axis actuator A ₈ , shoulder joint roll axis actuator A ₉ , upper arm yaw axis actuator A ₁₀ , elbow joint pitch axis actuator A ₁₁ , elbow joint roll axis actuator A ₁₂ representing each of the wrist joint roll axes 14 , A wrist joint pitch axis actuator A ₁₃ and a wrist joint roll axis actuator A ₁₄ are provided.

The leg unit 60R / L is subdivided into a thigh unit 61R / L, a knee unit 62R / L, and a shin unit 63R / L.
6. Hip joint yaw axis actuator A representing each of hip joint pitch axis 17, hip joint roll axis 18, knee joint pitch axis 19, ankle joint pitch axis 20, and ankle joint roll axis 21
₁₆ , a hip joint pitch axis actuator A ₁₇ , a hip joint roll axis actuator A ₁₈ , a knee joint pitch axis actuator A ₁₉ , an ankle joint pitch axis actuator A ₂₀ , and an ankle joint roll axis actuator A ₂₁ .

Each of the actuators A ₂ , A ₃ ... Is more preferably a small AC servo actuator (described above) of the type directly connected to a gear and of a type in which a servo control system is integrated into one chip and mounted in a motor unit.

The head unit 30, the trunk unit 40,
For each mechanism unit such as the arm unit 50 and each leg unit 60, a sub-control unit 3 for actuator drive control is provided.
5, 45, 55 and 65 are provided. Further, grounding confirmation sensors 91 and 92 for detecting whether or not the soles of the legs 60R and L have landed are mounted, and a posture sensor 93 for measuring a posture is provided in the trunk unit 40. ing. Based on the outputs of the sensors 91 to 93, the control target can be dynamically corrected by detecting the landing and leaving periods of the sole 22, the inclination of the trunk, and the like.

The main control unit 80 performs adaptive control on the sub-control units 35, 45, 55, 65 in response to the outputs of the sensors 91 to 93, and controls the upper limbs, trunk, And realize the coordinated movement of the lower limbs. Main controller 81
Is a foot exercise, ZMP according to a user command, etc.
(Zero Moment Point) The trajectory, the trunk movement, the upper limb movement, the waist height, and the like are set, and a command instructing an operation according to the set contents is transferred to each of the sub-control units 35, 45, 55, and 65. .

Each of the sub-control units 35, 45... Interprets the received command from the main control unit 81 and outputs a drive control signal to each of the actuators A ₂ , A ₃ . The “ZMP” referred to here is a point on the floor where the moment due to the floor reaction force during walking becomes zero, and the “ZMP trajectory” is, for example, during the walking operation of the robot 100. The trajectory of ZMP movement.

Next, the battery position adjusting mechanism in the humanoid robot 100 will be described. FIG.
1 illustrates a first example of a battery position adjusting mechanism.

The illustrated battery position adjusting mechanism 200 is attached to the upper body of the robot 100, and is preferably housed in the trunk unit 40.

The battery pack 210 is composed of, for example, several to several tens of nickel-cadmium battery cells and has a weight of about several kilograms. This battery pack 210
Are fixed on the battery pack mounting plate 215.

At the substantially left and right ends of the battery pack mounting plate 215, the long holes 221a and 221b and the long holes
21c and 221d are formed. As shown in FIG. 5, the L-shaped plates 203A and 203B can be fixed to the left and right ends of the battery pack mounting plate 215 by inserting screws through the long holes 221a. At this time, since each of the long holes 221a extends in the X axis, that is, the roll axis direction of the robot 100, the installation position of the battery mounting plate 215 in the X axis direction with respect to the L-shaped plates 203A and 203B is determined.
1a can be adjusted within the range of the major axis dimension.

On the other hand, a pair of support plates 201A and 201B
Are connected at a predetermined interval via a pair of connecting plates 205A and 205B. Although not shown in FIG. 5,
It should be understood that the support plates 201A and 201B are integrally attached to the trunk unit 40 of the robot 100 (or form a part of the trunk unit 40).

Four elongate holes 225a to 225d are formed on each of the support plates 201A and 201B, and a screw is inserted through each of the elongate holes to form an L-shaped plate 203A,
203B can be fixed. At this time, each slot 2
25a extend in the Z-axis direction, that is, in the yaw axis direction of the robot 100.
5a ... can be adjusted within the range of the major axis dimension.

To summarize the above, the support plates 201A, 201
1B, that is, the mounting position of the battery pack 210 with respect to the trunk unit 40 can be adjusted in each of the X-axis and Z-axis directions. The battery pack 210 includes the robot 1
It should be understood that since the weight of the robot 100 occupies several percent to several tens of percent of the total weight, the position of the center of gravity of the robot 100 can be set by adjusting the mounting position.

FIG. 6 illustrates a second example of the battery position adjusting mechanism. Hereinafter, description will be made with reference to FIG. However, the illustrated battery position adjusting mechanism 3
It should be understood that 00 is attached to the upper body of the robot 100 and is preferably housed within the torso unit 40 (ibid.).

The battery pack 310 includes, for example, several to several tens of nickel-cadmium battery cells and has a weight of about several kilograms. This battery pack 210
Are fixed on the battery pack mounting plate 315.

As shown, the battery pack mounting position 3
15, the movement in the Z-axis direction is restricted by four guide rails 321a to 321b. These guides
The rails 321a to 321b are formed by a pair of opposing support plates 3
41 and 342. Support plate 341,
It should be understood that 342 is integrally attached to (or forms a part of) trunk unit 40 of robot 100.

The battery pack mounting position 315
Is provided with a bearing 332 through which a ball screw 331 is inserted. Therefore, by rotating the ball screw 331 by the drive motor 333, the Z-axis position of the battery pack support plate 315, that is, the battery pack 310 can be moved. The drive control of the drive motor 333 is performed by, for example, the main control unit 80.

The battery pack 310 is connected to the robot 10
Since it occupies several to several tens of percent of the total weight of zero (as described above), the position of the center of gravity of the robot 100 can be dynamically set and reset by adjusting the mounting position using the drive motor 333. Please understand that.

According to the battery position adjusting mechanism as shown in FIG. 5 or FIG. 6, the humanoid robot 1 having the center of gravity in the upper body
00 can be further adaptively controlled. However, the optimal center of gravity position is determined according to the whole body movement pattern performed by the robot 100 (for example, “walk”, “run”, “jump”, “dance”, etc.).
Hereinafter, a method of determining the position of the center of gravity (in other words, the position where the battery is mounted) will be described.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure for determining the position of the center of gravity of the robot 100 (the mounting position of the battery). Hereinafter, each step of this flowchart will be described.

First, the position of the center of gravity of the robot 100 in the Z-axis (yaw axis) and X-axis (roll axis) directions is set (step S11), and a target whole body motion pattern of the robot 100 is set (step S12).

As already described in the section of [Prior Art], the robot 100 is composed of actuators A ₂ , A ₃ ... Having a large torque-to-weight ratio and relatively lightweight structural members. Most concentrate on actuators. However, since each actuator corresponds to the degree of freedom of the joint, and the installation location is almost fixed, it cannot be used for adjusting the position of the center of gravity. Therefore, setting the position of the center of gravity referred to in step S11 here is substantially the same as setting the mounting position of the battery pack. The ability to adjust the mounting position of the battery pack in the Z-axis and X-axis directions has already been described with reference to FIG. 5 or FIG.

The target whole body movement pattern is a movement pattern such as “walk”, “run”, “jump”, “dance” and the like.
The data is input to the main control unit 80 of the robot 100 by a method such as playback or offline teaching.

Next, in step S13, the current mass distribution data of the robot 100 is calculated based on the mounting position of the battery pack set in the preceding step S11. The mass distribution data obtained in this step is used in calculation processing in the subsequent step S16 and the like. The mass distribution data can be calculated using a multi-mass point approximation model of the robot 100, which will be described in detail later.

Next, in step S14, the motion performance required at each joint of the robot 100 for realizing the motion pattern is calculated. The exercise performance mentioned here includes the movable angle of the joint, the maximum torque, the maximum speed, and the like.

However, the allowable motion performance or rated motion performance is defined for the actuators A ₂ , A ₃ ... Used for each joint. If the required kinetic performance obtained in step S14 exceeds the allowable kinetic performance, the process goes to branch No in decision block S15, and the center of gravity of the robot 100 (that is, the mounting position of the battery pack) is reset. (Step S21), the same processing as described above is repeatedly executed.

Next, in step S16, the whole body movement pattern of the robot 100 is calculated using the target whole body movement pattern input in the preceding step S12. The whole body movement pattern can be calculated using, for example, a multi-mass point approximation model of the robot 100, but details will be described later.

Next, in a decision block S17, it is determined whether or not the calculated whole body motion pattern can be realized within the range of the allowable motion performance of each joint, that is, the actuator or the like. If it deviates from the permissible motion performance, the process goes to the branch No of the judgment block, the center of gravity of the robot 100 (that is, the mounting position of the battery pack) is reset (step S21), and the same processing as described above is performed. Is repeatedly executed.

Next, in step S18, an error E between the target whole body movement pattern and the calculated whole body movement pattern is calculated.

Then, in a decision block S19, it is determined whether or not the error E is within an allowable range. If it deviates from the allowable range, the process goes to the branch No of the determination block, the center of gravity of the robot 100 (that is, the mounting position of the battery pack) is reset (step S21), and the same processing as described above is performed. Execute repeatedly.

On the other hand, if the error E is within the allowable range, the set center of gravity is output as the optimum center of gravity of the robot 100 (step S21), and the entire processing routine ends.

The robot 100 obtained as described above
, The optimal mounting position of the battery pack can be calculated backward. The position of the battery pack may be adjusted according to the result of this back calculation. See FIG. 5 or FIG. 6 for the position adjustment mechanism.

Next, the calculation processing of the mass distribution data in step S13 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 7 will be described in detail.

As is well known in the field of dynamics and the like,
The position of the center of gravity R of the structure can be calculated by the following equation (where ρ (x, y, z) is the point (x, y,
z)).

[0097]

(Equation 1)

In order to obtain an exact solution, it is preferable that the robot 100 is strictly modeled as a rigid system instead of a mass system, but it requires a corresponding amount of calculation time. On the other hand, the robot 100 uses an actuator having a large torque-to-weight ratio and a lightweight structural member, so that most of its mass is concentrated on the actuator, that is, the joint.
Therefore, even if the robot 100 is treated as a multi-mass point approximation model, there is almost no problem (the details of the multi-mass point approximation model will be described later).

FIG. 8 shows, in the form of a flowchart, details of the procedure for calculating the mass distribution data when the multi-mass point approximation model is used. It should be understood that the entirety of this flowchart constitutes the aforementioned step S13. Hereinafter, each step of this flowchart will be described.

First, in step S31, the robot 10
0, all the axis angle information, all joint arrangement information, and all mass point arrangement information are input. These angle information and arrangement information are static and fixed data determined by the design specifications of the robot 100.
It can be supplied from the AD database.

Next, in step S32, the robot 1
When the midpoint of the right and left hip joints of 00 is set as the origin, all joint position information and all mass point position information are calculated.

Next, in step S33, the distance between the origin and each of the left and right sole planes is calculated.
At 4, it is determined which of the left and right sole planes is far from the origin. In the present embodiment, it is assumed that the sole that is farther from the origin is the foot that is currently landing.

If the right sole plane is farther away, the coordinates of all mass points are transformed so that the right sole plane becomes the XY plane (step S35R), while the left sole plane is farther away. If so, the coordinates of all mass points are converted so that the left sole plane becomes the XY plane (step S35L).

After such coordinate conversion, the position of the center of gravity of the robot 100 can be calculated from the mass and position at all mass points (step S36).

An example of the position of the center of gravity calculated in FIG. 8 is shown in FIG. 9 for reference. In the example shown in the drawing, the position of the center of gravity of the robot 100 is set above the lower back, that is, above the lower limbs. Therefore, the robot 100 can be regarded as an inverted pendulum, and stable posture control during dynamic walking can be suitably performed. The inverted pendulum can achieve a posture recovery by strongly accelerating the support point in the falling direction. In the walking system, this corresponds to strongly accelerating the target ZMP in the falling direction. In the case of performing the inverted pendulum control, it is advantageous to stabilize the walking control when the position of the center of gravity of the robot is rather high because the time from the loss of the balance of the center of gravity to the fall, that is, the period of the inverted pendulum is long.

Next, the process of calculating the whole body movement pattern of the robot 100 in step S16 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 7 will be described in detail. The robot 100 realizes a predetermined operation by controlling the driving of each joint, that is, the actuators A ₂ , A ₃ ... According to a predetermined whole-body movement pattern before normal operation.

The robot 100 itself is a set of infinite, ie, continuous mass points. However, in the present embodiment, the amount of calculation of the whole-body motion pattern calculation is reduced by replacing the robot 100 with an approximate model composed of a finite number of discrete mass points. Since the robot 100 uses an actuator having a large torque-to-weight ratio and a lightweight structural member, most of its mass is concentrated on the actuator, that is, the joint portion.

FIG. 10 illustrates a non-interfering multi-mass point approximation model of the robot 100 introduced for calculating the whole-body motion pattern.

In FIG. 10, the O-XYZ coordinate system represents the roll, pitch, and yaw axes in the absolute coordinate system, and the O'-X'Y'Z 'coordinate system represents the roll in the motion coordinate system that moves with the robot 100. , Pitch, and yaw axes. The multi-mass point model shown in FIG, i is a subscript representing a mass given to i-th, m _i is the i-th material point mass, r _'i is the i-th material point of the position vector (where motion coordinates System). In addition, the mass of the waist mass, which is particularly important in waist motion control described later, is m _h , its position vector is r ′ _h (r ′ _hx , r ′ _hy , r ′ _hz ), and the ZMP position vector is r ′. _zmp .

In the inexact non-interfering multi-mass point approximation model shown in FIG. 10, the moment equation is described in the form of a linear equation, and it should be understood that the moment equation does not interfere with the pitch axis and the roll axis. .

Such a multi-mass point approximation model can be generally generated by the following processing procedure.

(1) The mass distribution of the entire robot 100 is obtained. (2) Divide the robot 100 into a plurality of areas. The area is for setting a mass point. How to divide the area
Any of manual input by the designer or automatic generation according to a predetermined rule may be used. (3) for each of the regions i, obtains the center of gravity, is applied to the mass to the appropriate position of the center of gravity and mass m _i. (4) the mass points m _i, centered on the mass point position r _i, to display as a sphere having a radius proportional to its mass. (5) The masses that are actually connected, that is, the spheres are connected by wires.

The multi-mass point approximation model is a representation of a robot in the form of a wire frame model.
In the present embodiment, as can be seen from FIG. 10, this multi-mass point approximation model is one in which both shoulders, both elbows, both wrists, trunk, waist, and both ankles are set as mass points. .

The rotation angles (θ _hx , θ _hy , θ _hz ) in the waist information of the multi-mass model shown in FIG. 10 define the posture of the waist of the humanoid robot 100, that is, the rotation of the roll, pitch, and yaw axes. (In FIG. 11,
An enlarged view around the waist of the multi-mass model is shown, so please check it.)

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure for calculating the whole body movement pattern of the robot 100. However, in the following, the robot 100 will be described using a linear / non-interfering multi-mass point approximation model as shown in FIG.
Are described, and the following parameters are used in the calculation. However, it should be understood that symbols with a dash (') describe the motion coordinate system.

[0116]

(Equation 2)

[0117] Further, at a certain waist height of the robot 100 _{(r 'hz + r qz =} const), and assumes that knee mass point is zero.

In the case of the robot 100 according to this embodiment, a waist movement pattern enabling stable walking is generated based on an arbitrary foot movement pattern, ZMP trajectory, trunk movement pattern, upper limb movement pattern, and the like. Has become. ZMP (Zero Moment Point)
t) The trajectory refers to a point at which no moment is generated during walking when the sole (or sole) of the walking robot is fixed to the floor at a certain point, that is, the trajectory of the ZMP (described above).

As shown in this embodiment, one foot has six degrees of freedom.
In the case of a foot-walking robot (see FIG. 3), the posture of both legs is uniquely determined by the position of each foot 22R / L and the horizontal position and height of the waist. Therefore, generating the waist movement pattern is based on the posture of the legs, ie, the “gait” of the lower limbs
("Gait" is a technical term meaning "chronological change of joint angle" in the art).

First, in step S41, step S1
Based on the target whole body movement pattern set in 2, the foot (more specifically, the sole) movement, the ZMP trajectory derived from the foot movement, the trunk movement, the upper limb movement, the posture and height of the waist, etc. , A pattern for actually determining the drive / operation of each unit is set. More specifically, a foot motion pattern, a ZMP trajectory, a trunk motion pattern, and an upper limb motion pattern are set first. Also, regarding the motion of the waist, only the Z ′ direction is set, and the X ′ and Y ′ directions are unknown.

[0121] Next, using the linear and non-interfering multi-mass point approximate model, foot, trunk, and the pitch axis on setting ZMP generated by the upper limb, the moment about the roll axis (M _x, M _y ) Is calculated (step S42).

Next, using the linear / non-interfering multi-mass point approximation model, the moment on the set ZMP generated by the motion in the waist horizontal plane (r ′ _hx , r ′ _hy ) is calculated (step S43).

Next, a balance equation relating to the moment on the set ZMP is derived on the motion coordinate system O'-X'Y'Z 'that moves with the robot (step S4).
4). More specifically, foot, trunk, and moments generated by the upper limb (M _x, M _y) on the right side as terms of known variables, section on horizontal movement of the lumbar mass point (r _hx, r
_hy ) are collected on the left side as terms of unknown variables, and a linear and non-interfering ZMP equation (1) as shown in the following equation is derived.

[0124]

(Equation 3)

It is assumed that the following holds.

[0126]

(Equation 4)

Next, the above-mentioned ZMP equation (1) is solved to calculate the trajectory in the waist horizontal plane (step S45).
For example, by solving the ZMP equation (1) using a numerical solution (well-known) such as the Euler method or the Runge-Kutta method,
A numerical solution of the horizontal absolute position ( _rhx , _rhy ) of the waist as an unknown variable can be obtained (step S46). The numerical solution obtained here is an approximate solution of the waist movement pattern that enables stable walking, and more specifically, the waist horizontal absolute position where the ZMP enters the target position. The ZMP target position is normally set (for example, during quiet walking) on the sole that has landed.

If the previously set trunk / upper limb movement cannot be realized on the calculated approximate solution, the trunk / upper limb movement pattern is reset / corrected (step S47). At this time, the trajectory of the knee may be calculated.

Next, the strict model (that is, rigid body,
Alternatively, a moment (eM) on the set ZMP in the robot 100 (a precise model of a large number of mass points)
_x, eM _y) is calculated (step S48). The inexact model assumes that the above [Equation 4] holds,
Strictly, such an assumption is not required (ie, it need not be constant over time).

The moment (eM _x ,
eM _y ) is the moment error generated by the waist motion. In a succeeding step S49, this moment (e
It is determined whether or not (M _x , eM _y ) is less than the allowable value (εM _x , εM _y ) of the approximate moment in the inexact model. If it is less than the allowable value ε, it is possible to obtain the exact solution of the stable waist movement pattern and the whole body movement pattern that can realize the stable walking (step S50), and the entire processing routine ends.

On the other hand, the moment (e
M _x, eM _y) are allowable moment in approximate model (εM _x, when was εM _y) above, moment in strict model (eM _x, known generator moment in the approximation model using eM _y) ( M _x, modifies the M _y) (step S51). Then, the ZMP equation is derived again, and the calculation and correction of the approximate solution of the waist movement pattern are repeatedly executed until the ZMP equation converges to less than the allowable value ε.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing another example of a processing procedure for calculating a whole body movement pattern based on a target movement pattern in the robot 100 according to the present embodiment. However, in the same manner as described above, each joint position and motion of the robot 100 are described using a linear / non-interfering multi-mass point approximation model (same as above). Hereinafter, each step of this flowchart will be described.

First, in step S61, step S1
Based on the target whole body movement pattern set in 2, the foot (more specifically, the sole) movement, the ZMP trajectory derived from the foot movement, the trunk movement, the upper limb movement, the posture and height of the waist, etc. , A pattern for actually determining the drive / operation of each unit is set. More specifically, a foot motion pattern, a ZMP trajectory, a trunk motion pattern, and an upper limb motion pattern are set first. Also, regarding the motion of the waist, only the Z ′ direction is set, and the X ′ and Y ′ directions are unknown.

Next, using the linear / non-interfering multi-mass point approximation model, each moment (M _x , M _y) around the pitch axis and the roll axis on the set ZMP generated by the foot, trunk and upper limb movements ) Is calculated (step S62).

Next, the motion in the waist horizontal plane (r ′ _hx , r ′)
_hy ) is _subjected to Fourier series expansion (step S63). As is well known in the art, by performing Fourier series expansion, it is possible to replace the time axis component with the frequency component and perform the calculation. That is, in this case, the movement of the waist can be regarded as a periodic movement. Also, by performing Fourier expansion, FFT (Fast Fourier Transform) can be applied, so that the calculation speed can be greatly improved.

[0136] Then, the pitch axis on the setting ZMP, to Fourier series expansion also each moment about the roll axis (M _x, M _y) (step S64).

Next, the approximate solution of the lumbar movement is obtained by calculating the Fourier coefficient of the trajectory in the horizontal plane of the lumbar region and further developing the inverse Fourier series (step S65).
66). The approximate solution obtained here is an approximate solution (r _hx , _rhy ) of the horizontal absolute position of the waist defining a waist movement pattern capable of stable walking, and more specifically, the waist such that the ZMP enters the target position. The absolute horizontal position. The ZMP target position is normally set (for example, during quiet walking) on the sole that has landed.

If the calculated trunk / upper limb movement cannot be realized by the calculated approximate solution, the trunk / upper limb movement pattern is reset / corrected (step S67). At this time, the trajectory of the knee may be calculated.

Next, the strict model (that is, rigid body,
Alternatively, a moment (eM) on the set ZMP in the robot 100 (a precise model of a large number of mass points)
_x, eM _y) is calculated (step S68). The inexact model assumes that the above [Equation 4] holds,
Exact models do not require such assumptions (ie, they need not be constant over time).

The moment (eM _x ,
eM _y ) is the moment error generated by the waist motion. In a succeeding step S69, this moment (e
It is determined whether or not (M _x , eM _y ) is less than the allowable value (εM _x , εM _y ) of the moment in the approximate model. If it is less than the allowable value ε, the exact solution of the stable waist movement pattern and the whole body movement pattern that can realize the stable walking can be obtained (step S70), and the entire processing routine ends.

On the other hand, the moment (e
M _x, eM _y) are allowable moment in approximate model (εM _x, when was εM _y) above, moment in strict model (eM _x, known generator moment in inexact model using eM _y) (M _x, M _y) by modifying the (step S71), and Fourier series expansion again, to converge to less than the allowable value epsilon, repeatedly executes the correction and calculation of the approximate solution of the waist motion patterns.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing another example of the processing procedure for determining the position of the center of gravity of the robot 100 (the mounting position of the battery). Hereinafter, each step of this flowchart will be described.

First, in step S81, the robot 10
A possible range of the Z-axis direction center of gravity of 0 is calculated.

As described above, the movable range of the position of the center of gravity of the robot 100 is determined by the mounting position of the battery pack. For example, in the example shown in FIG.
The existence range in the Z-axis direction is determined by the major axis dimensions of 25a to 225d. In the example shown in FIG. 6, the range of the center of gravity in the Z-axis direction is determined according to the stroke range of the ball screw 331.

Next, in step S82, the maximum walking speed and the minimum number of basic patterns of the robot 100 are calculated at each possible position of the center of gravity in the Z-axis direction obtained in the preceding step S81.

Next, in step S83, an evaluation value at each position of the center of gravity in the Z-axis direction is calculated based on an evaluation function composed of the maximum walking speed and the minimum number of basic patterns.

Next, in step S84, the position of the center of gravity in the Z-axis direction having the lowest evaluation value is selected and output as the optimum position of the center of gravity in the Z-axis direction of the robot 100 (step S85).

The robot 100 obtained as described above
, The optimal mounting position of the battery pack can be calculated backward. The position of the battery pack may be adjusted according to the result of this back calculation. See FIG. 5 or FIG. 6 for the position adjustment mechanism.

[Supplement] The present invention has been described in detail with reference to the specific embodiments. However, it is obvious that those skilled in the art can modify or substitute the embodiment without departing from the spirit of the present invention. That is, the present invention has been disclosed by way of example, and should not be construed as limiting. In order to determine the gist of the present invention, the claims described at the beginning should be considered.

In determining the gist of the present invention, it is not appropriate to strictly apply FIG. 3 to the names of the joints and the like of the bipedal walking robot 100. Please be interpreted more flexibly in comparison with the body mechanism of an animal with an upright leg.

FIG. 14 illustrates a joint model configuration of a humanoid robot for reference. In the example shown in the figure, the part consisting of the shoulder joint 5 to the upper arm, the elbow joint 6, the forearm, the wrist 7, and the hand 8 is referred to as "upper limb". Further, a range from the shoulder joint 5 to the hip joint 11 is called a “trunk” and corresponds to a human torso. In addition, a range from the hip joint 11 to the trunk joint 10 in the trunk is particularly referred to as a “lumbar region”. The trunk joint 10 has an action of expressing the degree of freedom of the human spine. Also,
Thigh 12, knee 14, and lower leg 1 below hip joint 11
3. The part consisting of the ankle 15 and the foot 16 is referred to as "lower limb". Generally, the upper part of the hip joint is called "upper body" and the lower part is called "lower body"

FIG. 15 illustrates another joint model configuration of the humanoid robot. The example shown in FIG. 11 differs from the example shown in FIG. See the figure for the names of each part. As a result of omitting the trunk joint corresponding to the spine, the movement of the upper body of the humanoid robot loses its expressive power. However, in the case of a humanoid robot for industrial purposes, such as a dangerous operation or a surrogate operation, there is a case where the body does not need to move. 14 and FIG.
It should be understood that the reference numbers used in are not consistent with the other drawings.

[0153]

As described above in detail, according to the present invention,
For example, it is possible to provide an excellent legged mobile robot having a structure simulating an upright walking type body mechanism or operation of a human or a monkey.

Further, according to the present invention, a so-called upper body such as a trunk, an upper limb, and a head is mounted on the lower limb while performing a leg-type movement by bipedal upright walking. It is possible to provide an excellent upright walking / legged mobile robot capable of setting a suitable center of gravity position during a whole-body coordinated exercise including a trunk, an upper limb, and the like.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 shows a humanoid robot 100 used for carrying out the present invention.
It is the figure which showed a mode that looked at from the front.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a humanoid robot 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
It is the figure which showed the mode that looked at from the back.

FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically illustrating a degree-of-freedom configuration model included in the humanoid robot 100 according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically illustrating a control system configuration of the humanoid robot 100 according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a first example of a battery position adjustment mechanism.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a second example of the battery position adjustment mechanism.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure for determining the position of the center of gravity of the robot 100 (the mounting position of the battery).

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of calculating mass distribution data when a multi-mass point approximation model is used.

9 is a diagram exemplifying the position of the center of gravity of the robot 100 calculated according to the flowchart shown in FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is introduced for calculating a whole body movement pattern;
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a non-interfering multi-mass point approximation model of the robot 100.

11 is an enlarged view of the vicinity of the waist in the multi-mass approximate model of the robot 100 shown in FIG.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure for calculating a whole body movement pattern of the robot 100.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing another example of the processing procedure for calculating the whole body movement pattern of the robot 100.

FIG. 14 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of a joint model configuration of a humanoid robot.

FIG. 15 is a diagram schematically illustrating another example of the joint model configuration of the humanoid robot.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing another example of the processing procedure for determining the position of the center of gravity of the robot 100 (the mounting position of the battery).

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Head, 2 ... Neck joint yaw axis 3 ... Neck joint pitch axis, 4 ... Neck joint roll axis 5 ... Trunk pitch axis, 6 ... Trunk roll axis 7 ... Trunk yaw axis, 8 ... Shoulder joint pitch axis 9 ... shoulder joint roll axis, 10 ... upper arm yaw axis 11 ... elbow joint pitch axis, 12 ... forearm yaw axis 13 ... wrist joint pitch axis, 14 ... wrist joint roll axis 15 ... hand, 16 ... hip joint yaw axis 17 ... hip joint Pitch axis, 18: Hip joint roll axis 19: Knee joint pitch axis, 20: Ankle joint pitch axis 21: Ankle joint roll axis, 22: Foot (plantar) 30: Head unit, 40: Trunk unit 50: Arm Upper unit 52, elbow joint unit 53, forearm unit 60 leg unit, 61 thigh unit 62 knee unit, 63 shin unit 80 control unit 81 main control unit 82: Peripheral round 91, 92 ... ground check sensor 93 ... attitude sensor 100 ... humanoid robot

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Hiroki Saijo 6-7-35 Kita-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo Inside Sony Corporation (72) Inventor Yoshihiro Kuroki 6-7-35 Kita-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo Inside Sony Corporation (72) Inventor Kenzo Ishida 6-7-35 Kita-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo Sony Corporation Inside (72) Inventor Jinichi Yamaguchi 5-14-38 Tamadaira, Hino-shi, Tokyo F-term (Reference) 3F060 BA07 CA14 HA00 HA02 HA22

Claims (10)

[Claims] 1. A robot comprising at least a lower limb and an upper body disposed above the lower limb, the robot being movable by the movement of the lower limb. A robot which is displaceably mounted on the upper body. 2. A robot comprising at least a lower limb and an upper body disposed above the lower limb, the robot being movable by the movement of the lower limb, and a drive power source for driving at least a part of the robot. And a power supply unit having a weight that influences the position of the center of gravity of the entire robot, and a power supply attachment unit that displaces the power supply unit to the upper body in a displaceable manner. . 3. The robot according to claim 2, wherein said power supply mounting means mounts said power supply means movably on at least one of a yaw axis and a roll axis of the robot. 4. A robot comprising at least a lower limb and an upper body disposed above the lower limb, the robot being movable by the movement of the lower limb, for driving at least a part of the robot. A robot wherein the position of the center of gravity of the entire robot is moved upward by attaching a battery to the upper body. 5. A method of controlling a center of gravity of a robot, which comprises at least a lower limb and an upper body disposed above the lower limb, and is movable by movement of the lower limb, wherein: Setting the position of the center of gravity of at least one of the Z-axis and X-axis directions; (b) setting the target whole-body motion pattern of the robot; and (c) setting the whole body of the robot based on the target whole-body motion pattern. Calculating an exercise pattern; and (d) determining the set center-of-gravity position as an optimal center-of-gravity position if the calculated whole-body exercise pattern has an error from the target whole-body exercise pattern within an allowable range. Controlling the position of the center of gravity of the robot. 6. A step of resetting the position of the center of gravity of the robot and re-calculating the whole-body motion pattern when the calculated whole-body motion pattern is out of an allowable range with respect to the target whole-body motion pattern. The method of controlling the position of the center of gravity of a robot according to claim 5, further comprising: 7. The robot has a weight that affects the position of the center of gravity of the entire robot displaceably attached to the upper body, and forms an optimum center of gravity determined in step (d). The method of controlling the position of the center of gravity of the robot according to claim 5, wherein a mounting position of the heavy object is determined. 8. The robot, comprising: a power supply unit capable of supplying a driving power supply for driving at least a part of the robot; and a weight unit having a weight that affects a position of a center of gravity of the entire robot. Power supply mounting means that is displaceably attached to the body, and determines the mounting position of the power supply means by the power supply mounting means so as to form the optimal center of gravity position determined in step (d). 6. The method of controlling the position of the center of gravity of a robot according to claim 5, wherein 9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the power supply attaching means attaches the power supply means to at least one of a yaw axis and a roll axis of the robot so as to be displaceable. 10. A method of controlling the position of the center of gravity of a robot, which comprises at least a lower limb and an upper body disposed above the lower limb, and is movable by the movement of the lower limb, wherein at least a part of the robot A center of gravity position control method for a robot, wherein a center of gravity position of the entire robot is moved upward by attaching a drive battery for driving the robot to the upper body.