CARDSFlow: An End-to-End Open-Source Physics Environment for the Design, Simulation and Control of Musculoskeletal Robots

Simon Trendel, Yin Pok Chan, Alona Kharchenko, Rafael Hostetrler, Alois Knoll, Darwin Lau

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

5 Scopus citations

Abstract

Motivated by the similar structure and actuation mechanism to humans and animals, the study of musculoskeletal robots has gained attention in recent years. However, the unilateral actuation property of muscles and high complexity of the mechanical system imposes great challenges on the design and control of such robots. An open-source realistic simulation platform for theoretical testing would therefore be advantageous for the research community of musculoskeletal robots. In this paper, an end-to-end open-source framework for the design, simulation and control of the general class of musculoskeletal robots (CARDSFlow) is presented. The framework consists of three advantageous features: 1) 3D computer-aided designs of musculoskeletal robots can be automatically converted for use with Gazebo and CASPR; 2) realistic physics simulation of musculoskeletal robots within Gazebo; and 3) integration of CASPR cable-driven robot controllers with CARDSFlow through the ROS platform. Simulation results on a two-link planar robot and the Roboy robot arm are presented to demonstrate the convenience to design and simulate musculoskeletal robots using CARDSFlow.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publication2018 IEEE-RAS 18th International Conference on Humanoid Robots, Humanoids 2018
PublisherIEEE Computer Society
Pages245-250
Number of pages6
ISBN (Electronic)9781538672839
DOIs
StatePublished - 2 Jul 2018
Event18th IEEE-RAS International Conference on Humanoid Robots, Humanoids 2018 - Beijing, China
Duration: 6 Nov 20189 Nov 2018

Publication series

NameIEEE-RAS International Conference on Humanoid Robots
Volume2018-November
ISSN (Print)2164-0572
ISSN (Electronic)2164-0580

Conference

Conference18th IEEE-RAS International Conference on Humanoid Robots, Humanoids 2018
Country/TerritoryChina
CityBeijing
Period6/11/189/11/18

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