Publication

Abstract: This paper deals with motion planning algorithm for kinematically redundant manipulators that are not fixed to the ground. Differently from usual redundant manipulators fixed to the ground, the stability issue should be taken into account to prevent the robot from falling down. The typical ZMP equation, which is employed in human walking, will be employed to evaluate the stability. This work proposes a feed forward ZMP planning algorithm. The algorithm embeds the 'ZMP equations' indirectly into the kinematics of the kinematic model of a manipulator via a ZMP stability index. The kinematic self motion of the redundant manipulator drives the system in such a way to keep or plan the ZMP at the desired position of the footprint. A sequential redundancy resolution algorithm exploiting the remaining kinematic redundancy is also proposed to enhance the performances of joint limit index and manipulability. In addition, the case exerted by external forces is taken into account. Through simulation for a 5 DOF redundant robot model, feasibility of the proposed algorithms is verified. Lastly, usual applications of the proposed kinematic model are discussed.