Abstract:

The central pattern generator (CPG) is a very important method for the control of robotic rhythmic locomotion. Based on the Wilson-Cowan neural oscillator, a new CPG controller for quadruped robot rhythmic locomotion control was presented. Each Wilson-Cowan neural oscillator was responsible forcontrolling the motion of an individual leg, and the harmony motion of one leg with the others was controlled with four Wilson-Cowan neural oscillators. By replacing the gait matrix of neural oscillators, some different rhythmic locomotion models and switching between the models can be generated. Simulation results show that the presented CPG controller can generate different robotic gaits, and the gaits satisfy the phase demand.

Key words: neural oscillator; quadruped robot; central pattern generator; gait