Analysis of wave gaits for energy efficiency

In this paper an energy efficiency analysis of wave gaits is performed for a six-legged walking robot. A simulation model of the robot is used to obtain the data demonstrating the energy consumption while walking in different modes and with varying parameters. Based on the analysis of this data some strategies are derived in order to minimize the search effort for determining the parameters of the gaits for an energy efficient walk. Then, similar data is obtained from an actual experimental setup, in which the Robot-EA308 is used as the walking machine. The strategies are justified based on this realistic data. The analysis concludes the following: a phase modified version of wave gaits is more efficient than the (conventional) wave gaits, using the possible minimum protraction time results in more energy efficient gaits and higher velocity results in less energy consumption per traveled distance. A stability analysis is performed for the phase modification of the wave gaits, and the stability loss due to the modification is calculated. It is concluded that the loss in stability is insignificant.