Defense of Mr Morgan LANGARD thesis9:00 am | Amphi E | POLYTECH ANGERS | 62, avenue Notre-Dame du Lac 49000 ANGERS

The December 18, 2023

Subject : Bio-inspired humanoïd robot : Design and experimentation.

Directors of thesis : Philippe LUCIDARME and the late Nicolas DELANOUE

Abstract

In the field of humanoïd robotic, bipedal walking is still an open research fiel, such as the development of control laws, trajectory generation or original architecture designs. Bipedal robots classicaly use rotative motors for their actuation system. These motors are usually coupled with a reduction system in order to achieve sufficient torques. This combination impose to compromise between the output torque and the mecanical reversibility of the system, which limits impact absorption. An alternative is the use of direct-drive linear actuators, inherently reversible. However, linear motors are scarcely used with a rotative actuator linked to a ball-screw, with a limited reversibility. As linear motors produce a translational force, a torque is generated through a lever arm. This specificity requires an optimal placement of the actuators to ensure the feasability of the required torques. To improve our knowledge of this technology and evaluate its use in the robotic field, multiple bipedal planar robot architectures are simulated along different trajectories and compared. In parallel, an optimal geometry is computed for each architecture to maximize motion feasability. From these results, a prototype using solely direct-drive linear actuators is designed and built in order to verify simulation data.

Keywords

planar walking robot, linear actuator, design, optimisation