Minimum time sprinting from rest in a planar quadruped

Abstract

Animals are able to accelerate rapidly from rest with incredible dexterity but these transient motions are poorly understood. Here we present the first examination of the time optimal behaviour of a quadruped sprinting from rest. We develop a planar multi-body model and employ modern trajectory optimization methods to produce a motion without prescribing periodicity or foot contact order. Our trajectories produce several similarities with racing greyhounds. These results will inspire the design of feedback controllers for future manoeuvrable quadruped robots.