Project Name : 6 leg Kinematic walker robot with manipulator.

Abstract:

Walking on uneven terrain is always a benchmark problem for autonomous guided

vehicles. In the present work, the same issue is dealt with the help of a legged mobile
robot. Various comparisons are made among two, four, and six- legged walking
machine and a four-legged walking machine is selected based on the suitability
criterion. In this paper, the emphasis is given for minimization of the design and
controlling complexities for the four-legged walking machine. A prototype devised
to test various gaits. For the walking and turning, an improved gait is
presented. The legs are designed with one degree of freedom each. The actuation is
tested on normal DC geared motors as well as DC motors. A comparison is made
between the two actuators. For proper walking, a control scheme is prepared and real
time tests are performed by implementing it on the Arduino microcontroller. The
present work is helpful to analyze the performance of a legged autonomous walking
machine on unstructured environment.

Introduction
1.1 Movement: Wheeled, Tracked and Legged

Almost all animals and humans as well have legs for locomotion or movement. But
historically the very first vehicles developed by human were run with wheels. And
even now through the industrial revolution and technological progress wheeled
locomotion has remained the most widespread technology of transportation.
The wheeled locomotion is most advantageous in predetermined and plane
surfaces. However, it is disadvantageous in uneven and smooth terrains. The tracked
locomotion has been developed in order to cope with this problem. However,
tracked locomotion is also troublesome, since it destroys the terrain on which the
vehicle is moving.
Legged locomotion is mechanically superior to wheeled or tracked locomotion over
a variety of soil conditions and certainly superior for crossing obstacles. This
advantage of legged locomotion is mostly due to the fact that legged systems use

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isolated footholds. Due to this fact as an alternative to both wheeled and
tracked forms, legged locomotion is being developed by imitating the legged
animals in nature.

1.2 Why Legged Mechanism?

The main advantage of legged robots or moving machine is their ability to access
places impossible for wheeled machines. US army investigation reports that about
half the earth’s surface is inaccessible to wheeled or tracked vehicles, whereas this
terrain is mostly exploited by legged animals.
Wheeled and tracked systems follow the surface in a continuous manner and
consequently their performance is spoiled by the worst parts on the terrain. A
legged system, on the other hand, can choose the best places for foot placement.
These footholds are isolated from the remaining terrain. Hence the performance of
the legged system is boosted by the best footholds. Besides using isolated footholds,
the legged system can provide active suspension, which does not exist in wheeled or
tracked systems. A legged system can be arranged (leg lengths lengthened and
shortened) according to the level alteration and they can jump over obstacles or
holes. Therefore, the body can be moved in a desired course, for example

horizontally, whatever the terrain is. The legged locomotion also inflicts the least
damage to the surface compared to wheeled and tracked systems.
The most forceful motivation for studying legged moving
machine is:

• To give access to places which are dirty

• To give access to places those are dangerous

• To accomplish jobs which are highly difficult for wheeled or tracked vehicles

1.3 Multi-Legged Walking

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Many of the animals in nature have adopted legs for various environmental
conditions. Centipedes, spiders, cockroaches, cats, camels, kangaroos, and
human are among those, either with different number of legs or with different kind
of walking. People turned their attention to these walking animals, after it was
recognized that the wheeled and tracked systems did not satisfy all the needs. The
basic requirements of any walking mechanism can be acquired from these
biological examples. The plan of walking, namely the “gait pattern”, determines the
sequence of stepping of legs with their stance and swing durations in each step.
Gait pattern generation is the generation of rhythmic plan that determines which leg
will be in power or return stroke in any time. A coordination and control unit is also
needed that controls the legs according to the gait pattern. Another requirement is
stability: both static and dynamic.

There are different types of legged walking robots. They are roughly divided into
groups according to the number of legs they possess. Bipeds have two legs,
quadrupeds four, hexapods six and octopods have eight legs. Biped walking
mechanisms are dynamically stable, but statically unstable, they are harder to
balance, and dynamic balance can only be achieved during walking. Hexapods or
six legged robots, on the other hand, have advantages of being statically stable.
During walking they can move three legs at a time, thus leaving three other legs
always on the ground forming a triangle.

1.4 Six Legged Walking Mechanism

The proposed Six Legged Walking Mechanism has three pairs of legs: three
attached to the front shaft and three more to the rear shaft. The mechanism is a
lower pair mechanism with only pin joints or revolute pairs. The legs are made by
extending the couplers of a four bar RRRR mechanism. All the four bar
mechanisms are of crank-rocker type and the crank is connected to the motor. A
pair of legs (front and rear) share the same frame and a common

pivot. The motion and the gait is obtained by keeping suitable angular lag between

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the cranks connected to the various legs. While the mechanism is in motion, at any
instant of time three legs keep contact with the ground forming a triangle and
making the mechanism dynamically stable.

Literature Review

2.1 History of Legged Mechanism

The scientific study of legged locomotion began just very a century ago
when Leland Stanford, then governor of California, commissioned Edward
Muyridge to find out whether or not a trotting horse left the ground with all four
feet at the same time (). Stanford had wagered that it never did. After Muybridge
proved him wrong with a set of stop motion photographs that appeared in Scientific
American in 1878, Muybridge went on to document the walking and running
behavior of over 40 mammals, including humans. His photographic data are still of
considerable value and survive as a landmark in locomotion research. The study of
machines that walk also had its origin in Muybridge’s time. An early walking
model appeared in about. It used a linkage to move the body along a straight
horizontal path while the feet moved up and down to exchange support during
stepping. The linkage was originally designed by the famous Russian
mathematician Chebyshev some years earlier. During the 80 or 90 years that
followed, workers viewed the task of building walking machines as the task of
designing linkages that would generate suitable stepping motions when driven by a
source of power.

Many designs were proposed but the performance of such machines was limited
by their fixed patterns of motion, since they could not adjust to variations in the
terrain by placing the feet on the best footholds. By the late 1950s, it had
become clear that linkages providing fixed motion would not suffice and that
useful walking machines would need control. One approach to control was to
harness a human. Ralph Mosher used this approach in building a four-legged
walking truck at General Electric in the mid-1960s. The project was part of a

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decade-long campaign to build advanced operators, capable of providing better
dexterity through high-fidelity force feedback. The machine Mosher built stood
11 feet tall, weighed
3000 pounds, and was powered hydraulically. Each of the driver’s limbs was
connected to a handle or pedal that controlled one of the truck’s four legs.
Whenever the driver caused a truck leg to push against an obstacle, force feedback
let the driver feel the obstacle as though it were his or her own arm or leg doing the
pushing. After about 20 hours of training, Mosher was able to handle the machine
with surprising agility. Films of the machine operating under

his control show it ambling along at about 5 MPH, climbing a stack of railroad ties,
pushing a foundered jeep out of the mud, and maneuvering a large drum onto some
hooks. Despite its dependence on a well-trained human for control, this walking
machine was a landmark in legged technology.

2.2 Different Types of Legged Mechanisms

Normally six bar mechanism is chosen for moving leg robot because of its superior
force- transmission angle and bigger oscillating angle in comparison with other
types such as the four-bar mechanism. Force transmission is very important for leg
mechanisms, because of the point contact with the ground. The leg mechanism itself
has one DOF for lifting, whilst the base of mechanism has another DOF for
swinging. The body size and link dimensions are determined from the maximum
swing and lift angles. Each link is created by entering its shape and reference
coordinates. To mate the contact surfaces of the parts, the assembly bar of the
assembly mating menu is used. Then the component is rotated around an axis,
specifying the desired axis and rotation for the selected surfaces.

Yoseph Bar-Cohen, in his report named -Biomimetics: mimicking and inspired-by

biology, discussed that how the evolution of nature led to the introduction of highly
effective and power efficient biological mechanisms. Imitating these
mechanisms offers enormous potentials for the improvement of our life and the
tools we use [2]. Shibendu Shekhar Roy, Ajay Kumar Singh, and Dilip Kumar

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Pratihar, in their paper, highlighted the analysis of Six- legged Walking Robots and
the attempt made to carry out kinematic and dynamic analysis of a six-legged robot.
A three-revolute (3R) kinematic chain has been chosen for each leg mechanism in
order to mimic the leg structure of an insect [3]. Patil Sammed Arinjay and Khotin
developed Bio-Mimic Hexapod and explained Dynamic Modeling and Control in
Operational Space of a Hexapod Robot and comments the real times application of
hexapod robot for control. Based on an operational trajectory planner, a computed
torque control for the leg of hexapod robot is presented. This approach takes into
account the real time force distribution on the robot legs and the dynamic model of
the hexapod. First, Kinematic and dynamic modeling are presented. Then, a
methodology for the optimal force distribution is given. The force distribution
problem is formulated in terms of a nonlinear programming problem under equality
and in equality on straits. The friction on strains is transformed from nonlinear
inequalities into a combination of linear equalities and linear inequalities.
Simulations are given in order to show the effectiveness of the proposed approach
[4].

Fig.2.2.1- ASV Six Legged Walking

Machine

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Fig.2.2.2- OSD Six Legged
Walking Robot

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Fig.2.2.3- John Dear Walking Robot

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Fig2.2.4- Forest Walking Machine

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Methodology

The objective is to be achieved through the following steps which defines the
methodology adopted in this project work:

Methodology of working process

Study of different Research papers

Framing of project setup (Line diagram of the Model)

Dimensioning of frame, Specification of the

Component for setting up a conceptual model

Assembling Of different components

Results & disscusion about the error in the

conceptual model

Fig. 5 Flow Chart For Working Process

3.1 Problem Statement

 Literature review reveals that the main concern with the moving leg mechanism
is the number of links involved in the design of the structure. If there are more number
of links it is very tedious to design and operate. For the mechanism to move in a
smooth manner the dimensions of the pieces should be precise. More priority should be
given to maintain the exact lengths of the links which is determined by the position of
the holes to be drilled. Also the movement depends on the amount of power or motion
which is transferred to the locomotive parts with respect to the position of the
drills. The key to success for this mechanism is for the designer to make it
locomotive even in the roughest of terrains. An objective is set to develop a six- legged
mobile robot in this project.

OBJECTIVES :

To give access to places which are dirty.

To give access to places those are dangerous.
Job which are highly difficult.
The structure design of this kind of robots puts great contribution to
environmental adaptability and walking stability on complex and nasty non –
structure environment.
This study presents a new type of six – legged walking machine.
This six legged walking machine adopts new structure and tripod gait, as well as
six legs driven

COMPONENT SELECTION :

DC Geared wiper motor:

A windshield wiper or windscreen wiper (British English) is a device used to remove

rain, snow, ice and debris from a vehicle's front window. Almost all motor vehicles,
including cars, trucks, buses, train locomotives, and watercraft with a cabin—and
some aircraft—are equipped with one or more such wipers, which are usually a legal
requirement.

Arduino Uno is a microcontroller board based on the ATmega328P. It has 14 digital

input/output pins (of which 6 can be used as PWM outputs), 6 analog inputs, a 16 MHz
quartz crystal, a USB connection, a power jack, an ICSP header and a reset button. It
contains everything needed to support the microcontroller; simply connect it to a
computer with a USB cable or power it with a AC-to-DC adapter or battery to get started.
"Uno" means one in Italian and was chosen to mark the release of Arduino Software
(IDE) 1.0. The Uno board and version 1.0 of Arduino Software (IDE) were the reference
versions of Arduino, now evolved to newer releases. The Uno board is the first in a series
of USB Arduino boards, and the reference model for the Arduino platform.

Table: Arduino Description

RFID

HOW DOES RFID WORK?

RFID belongs to a group of technologies referred to as Automatic Identification and Data

Capture (AIDC). AIDC methods automatically identify objects, collect data about them,
and enter those data directly into computer systems with little or no human intervention.
RFID methods utilize radio waves to accomplish this. At a simple level, RFID systems
consist of three components: an RFID tag or smart label, an RFID reader, and an antenna.
RFID tags contain an integrated circuit and an antenna, which are used to transmit data to
the RFID reader (also called an interrogator). The reader then converts the radio waves to
a more usable form of data. Information collected from the tags is then transferred
through a communications interface to a host computer system, where the data can be
stored in a database and analyzed at a later time.

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is a wireless non-contact use of radio

frequency electromagnetic fields to transfer data in order to automatically identify and
track the tags attached to the items. Some tags require no battery and run and read at
short distances via magnetic fields (electromagnetic induction). Other uses a local
power source and emits radio waves (electromagnetic radiation at radio
frequencies). The tag contains information that is stored electronically can be read
from up to several meters away. Unlike a barcode, the label need not be within line of
sight of the reader and may be embedded in the tracked object. The output of the
microcontroller is insufficient to drive the motor. Thus, a driver IC is required
between the micro and the engine that amplifies the output signal from the
controller. The L293D is designed to provide bidirectional drive currents up to 600 mA at
voltages from 4.5V to 36V.

DESIGN OF TRANSMISSION SYSTEM

There are many aspects should be considered in transmission system design, including
leg arrangement, motor position and transmission accuracy. It plays a vital role in body
stability, reliability and scalability.

This walking machine use rectangular body, both left and right sides of the machine
arranged three legs, respectively. Leg connects to body through a joint shaft. We use
the symmetrical arrangement to ensure the machine’s center of gravity coincides with
the geometric center. In order to ensure the six-legged gait coordination in walking, we
use a single motor to drive 6 legs movement synchronously. System power pass
through the chain, specific delivery path are as follows: Motor output power pass
through the sprocket 1, sprocket 2 to the shaft 2, then drive shaft 2 and shaft 3,
respectively. In order to ensure the same speed of shaft 1, 2 and
3, the transmission ratio both of sprocket 3 and sprocket 5, sprocket 4 and sprocket 6
choose 1 preferably, use the same specifications of the chain to achieve constant speed
drive.
Basic Operation :

When the power supply is given, the robot moves over the black line by continuously
sensing the black and white surfaces. When the RFID reader detects the RFID tag, the
mobility of the robot is stopped and the arm to picks to start the object. Once the object is
picked, the robot continues moves over the black line and on sensing the other RFID tag,
the robot stops and drops the object and the same operation is continued.
APPLICATIONS

1. It would be difficult to compete with the efficiency of a wheel on

smooth hard surfaces but as condition increases rolling friction, this linkage
becomes more viable and wheels of similar size cannot handle obstacles that
this linkage is capable of. Toys could be developed that would fit in the palm of
your hand and just large enough to carry a battery and a small motor.
2. Six leg mechanical spiders can be applicable for the making of robots. It has
a wide range of application in the manufacturing of robots. A large version
could use existing surveillance technology to convert your television into a real-
time look at the world within transmitting range.
3. It would also relay commands from the remote to the spider bike
additional frequencies could be used to operate manipulators for retrieving the
mail during unfavorable weather or taking the dog out.
4. It can also be used for military purpose. By placing bomb detectors in the
machines, we can easily detect the bomb without harmful to humans. It can be
used as heavy tanker machines for carrying bombs as well as carrying other
military goods.
5. It is also applicable in the goods industries for the small transportation of goods
inside the industry. The mountain roads or other difficulties where ordinary
vehicles cannot be moved easily can be replaced by our six-leg mechanical
spider.
6. Heavy loads can be easily transported if we made this as a giant one. It has got
further application for the study of linkage mechanism and kinematic motions.
The geometry and conditions can be changed according to application needs. It
can travel in rough surfaces very easily, so this machine can be used in rough
surfaces were ordinary moving machine cannot travel.
CONCLUSION :

An autonomous robot which can be controlled using wireless technology and this robot
follows the line and moves to the desired location and performs pick and place operation
of item .These Robots can be deployed in vital locations and can also be used in the
military for rescue missions. These Autonomous unmanned robots can communicate
with ad hoc network and can perform even better.

REFERENCES:

1.Mustafa Alani, Widad Ismail, and JS.Mandeep, Active RFID system and applications.
Electronics World, 115(1877):22–24, 2009.

2.Amit Kumar, M. Manjunata, A.K. Majumdar, J. Mukhopadayay and Rusha Patra, "An
Electronic Travel Aid for Navigation of Visually Impaired Persons", 3'd International
Conference on Communication Systems and Networks, pp.1-5, January 2011.

3. Barroso J, Faria J, Fernandez H, Martins P, "Electronic White Cane for Blind People
Navigation Assistance", World Automation congress,pp.l- 7,September 2010.

4. Oimitrios Oakopouslos and Nikolaos G.Bourbakis, "Wearable Obstacle

Avoidance Electronic Travel Aids for Blind: A Survey", IEEE Transactions on
Systems, Man and Cybernetics, Vo1.40, No.1, pp.25-35, January 2010.