抄録
The ageing of elderly is a significant problem in developed countries. We address the problem by using a personal robot that follows elderly people. To accomplish its task, the robot needs to meet two main specifications: compact size, and excellent traveling performance. In this paper, we introduce the prototype of our compact personal robot and propose a posture control approach based on a model predictive control. Our approach can control the zero moment point within the desired range to achieve quick turning. The effectiveness of the proposed approach is evaluated by both simulations and experiments using the prototype robot.