Shock Mitigation and Fall Recovery for Humanoid Robot Utilizing Opening and Closing Mechanism of a Folding Umbrella

Abstract

Unstable robots such as humanoids are at high risk of hardware damage due to falls. Shock mitigation methods for robots using frames are not retractable, and those using airbags are not reversible. In this study, the purpose is to mitigate the impact of a fall by using a folding umbrella, which is reversible and compact. When the robot falls over due to external force, the folding umbrella is released to mitigate the shock to the body by detecting and predicting the fall based on the angle, angular velocity and acceleration information obtained by the Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU). The robot recognizes the fall pattern by IMU and performs a fall recovery action according to each pattern. Finally, the robot closes the umbrella by wire system and returns to its original state.