Energy-Efficient Dynamic Motion Planning of Quadruped Robots via Whole-body Nonlinear Trajectory Optimization

Abstract

Energy-efficient locomotion is an important capability for quadruped robots. Most of existing physically-embodied robots do not have satisfactory energy-efficiency in spite of abilities of diverse gaits and negotiation of complex environments. In this paper, we present a whole-body nonlinear trajectory optimization framework for energy-efficient motion planning of quadruped robots, in which whole-body dynamic model of robot is enforced as dynamic constraints in the optimization, and mechanical actuator work is directly penalized in the cost function. The results presented show the potential of the optimization framework for effectively gait motion generation while optimizing the energy consumption and conforming the dynamics of the robot.