Biologically Inspired Deadbeat control for running: from human analysis to humanoid control and back

Abstract

This paper works towards bridging the gap between observations and analysis of human running motions, i.e. motion science, and robust humanoid robot control. It is based on the concept of Biologically Inspired Deadbeat (BID) control, which was introduced in [1] and enhanced in [2] to not only allow 3D running on flat ground but also on 3D stepping stones. Further contributions of [2] include explicit foot step targeting during running, leg cross-over avoidance and the embedding of BID control into a QP-based whole-body controller. The controller is based on the encoding of leg forces and CoM trajectories during stance as polynomial splines, allowing for intuitive and primarily analytical controller design. It allows a real-time implementation, is highly robust against perturbations and enables versatile running patterns. This paper combines and complements the methods derived in [1] and [2]. It expatiates on the analytical foot-step targeting method introduced in [2], introduces a new method to increase kinematic feasibility on complex robot models and presents advanced whole-body running simulations including high-speed running and push-recovery. The paper closes the circle to human motion science by comparing BID-based CoM trajectories and ground reaction forces (GRF) to data from human running experiments.