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Experimental Robotics III pp 476–485Cite as

Autonomous walking in natural terrain: A retrospective on the performance of the ambler

  • Section 8 Mobile Robots
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Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Control and Information Sciences ((LNCIS,volume 200))

Abstract

The objective of our research is to enable robotic exploration of remote, natural areas. Toward this end, we have developed an integrated walking system for the Ambler—a six-legged walking robot designed for planetary exploration—and tested it in indoor and outdoor autonomous walking trials. In this paper, we summarize our approach to autonomous walking, compare it to other approaches from the literature, and present results of the walking trials. Then we assess the performance relative to our objectives for self-reliant control, power-efficient locomotion, and traversal of rugged terrain.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, 15213, Pittsburgh, PA

    Eric Krotkov & Reid Simmons

Authors
  1. Eric Krotkov
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  2. Reid Simmons
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Editor information

Tsuneo Yoshikawa (PhD)Fumio Miyazaki (PhD)

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© 1994 Springer-Verlag London Limited

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Krotkov, E., Simmons, R. (1994). Autonomous walking in natural terrain: A retrospective on the performance of the ambler. In: Yoshikawa, T., Miyazaki, F. (eds) Experimental Robotics III. Lecture Notes in Control and Information Sciences, vol 200. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/BFb0027615

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BFb0027615

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-540-19905-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-540-39355-9

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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