USING OPTIMIZATION TECHNIQUES FOR THE DESIGN AND CONTROL OF FAST BIPEDS

E-mail: katja.mombaur@iwr.uni-heidelberg.deFast, dynamic or energy efficient locomotion of bipeds is still an unsolved prob-lem in robotics. Nature seems to have solved many of the arising difficulties inthousands of years of evolution, optimizing both mechanics and control alongthe way. This paper proposes to use techniques from numerical optimizationand optimal control combined with behavior-based control concepts to addresssome of the problems when designing and controlling two-legged robots. Re-sults from the optimization process will affect both the mechanical constructionand the control strategies.Keywords: Optimal Control, Behaviour-based Control, Bipeds.