Development of an Advanced Model of Passive Dynamic Biped Walking

Passive dynamic walking is a manner of walking developed, partially or in whole, by the energy provided by gravity. Studying passive dynamic walking provides insight into human walking and is an invaluable tool for designing energy efficient biped robots. The objective of this research was to develop a continuous mathematical model of passive dynamic walking, in which the Hunt-Crossley contact model and the LuGre friction model were used to represent the normal and tangential ground reactions. A physical passive walker was built to validate the proposed mathematical model. A traditional impact-based passive walking model was also used as a reference to demonstrate the advancement of the proposed passive dynamic walking model. The simulated gait of the proposed model matched the gait of the physical passive walker exceptionally well, both in trend and magnitude.