Bionic cheetah spine-pelvis cooperative elastic energy storage and explosion mechanism

Abstract

This invention discloses a biomimetic cheetah spine-pelvis coordinated elastic energy storage and burst mechanism, belonging to the field of high-speed quadruped robot power drive technology. Existing cheetah spine patents mostly focus on single-spine elastic buffering, failing to address the core mechanism of coordinated burst power through "spine bending + pelvic rotation," resulting in insufficient explosive force and low energy conversion efficiency at high speeds. This invention mimics the biological movement patterns of a cheetah's periodic spinal bending and synchronous pelvic rotation during running, designing a dual-elastic energy storage unit between the spine and pelvis. Through tendon linkage, a complete cycle of "energy storage-release-coordinated burst power" is achieved, enabling the robot to accelerate from 0 to 10 m / s in ≤0.3s with an energy recovery efficiency ≥60%, significantly overcoming the performance bottleneck of existing single-spine mechanisms. This mechanism features an original structure and novel layout, and can be widely applied to high-speed reconnaissance robots, racing robots, and obstacle-crossing robots.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the fields of biomimetic robot power drive, elastic energy storage and collaborative control, and high-speed quadruped robot technology. Specifically, it relates to an explosive elastic energy storage mechanism that mimics the coordinated movement of the spine and pelvis of a cheetah, which can be applied to the power output system of high-speed mobile robots, special operation robots, and outdoor exploration equipment. Background Technology

[0002] The explosive performance of high-speed quadruped robots relies heavily on the coordinated movement of the spine and pelvis. Existing cheetah-related patents often employ a single elastic spring or a series elastic actuator (SEA) for the spine design, achieving only simple buffering and energy storage without incorporating the cheetah's biological mechanism of "synchronous pelvic rotation during spinal flexion and coordinated tendon transmission." While some solutions mention the pelvis, they fail to achieve real-time linkage with the spine, resulting in significant energy conversion losses and limited explosive force, failing to achieve the instantaneous acceleration capabilities of a cheetah. Furthermore, existing mechanisms often employ centralized drives, leading to excessive weight and slow response, failing to meet the engineering requirements of lightweight design and high responsiveness. Currently, there is a significant technological gap in publicly available technologies both domestically and internationally regarding integrated mechanisms for "dual elastic energy storage of the spine and pelvis, and coordinated explosive force through tendon linkage," making it difficult to meet the core requirement of high-speed robots for instantaneous power. Summary of the Invention

[0003] This invention aims to address the technical shortcomings of existing cheetah spinal mechanisms, such as lack of pelvic coordination, insufficient explosive power, and low energy efficiency. It provides a biomimetic cheetah spinal-pelvic coordinated elastic energy storage and explosive mechanism to achieve instantaneous high torque output and efficient energy circulation.

[0004] This mechanism comprises a bionic spine, a pelvic rotation component, bilateral highly elastic energy-storing tendons, a synergistic linkage, a pre-tensioning drive unit, and a burst release controller. The bionic spine consists of 3-4 vertebrae with flexible hinges between segments, enabling forward and backward flexion and extension. The pelvic rotation component is connected to the tail of the spine via ball joints, allowing for ±30° rotational movement. One end of the highly elastic energy-storing tendon is fixed to the spinal frame, while the other end connects to the pelvis and leg linkage. It stretches and stores energy during spinal flexion and releases energy synchronously during pelvic rotation, assisting in driving explosive leg force. The pre-tensioning drive unit uses a low-power motor that self-locks after power is cut off, consuming no continuous energy. The burst release controller, via attitude sensor signals, instantaneously triggers tendon release during acceleration / obstacle-crossing conditions, achieving synergistic burst force.

[0005] This invention significantly improves energy recovery efficiency and instantaneous explosive force through the coordinated movement of the spine and pelvis. It has a lightweight structure, fast response, and can be directly integrated into the interior of a high-speed quadruped robot.

Claims

1. A biomimetic cheetah spine-pelvis coordinated elastic energy storage and release mechanism, characterized in that, It includes a bionic spine body, a pelvic rotation component, bilateral high-elasticity energy storage tendons, a synergistic linkage, a pre-tension drive unit, and a burst release controller; the bionic spine body is composed of 3 to 4 bionic vertebrae connected in series, and the segments are connected by flexible hinges to achieve forward and backward pitching movements, with a bending angle range of ±25°; the pelvic rotation component is connected to the tail of the spine by a ball joint, with a rotation angle range of ±30°, and achieves coordinated movement with the spine.

2. The mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that, The high-elasticity energy storage tendon is made of high-modulus elastic composite material. The tensile deformation range of a single tendon is 8mm to 30mm, and the energy storage linearity error is ≤5%. It can complete synchronous energy storage and directional energy release during spinal bending and pelvic rotation.

3. The mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that, The coordinated linkage connects the pelvic rotational power with the leg drive linkage, with a transmission efficiency of ≥92% and no significant lag, achieving efficient transmission of pelvic rotational energy to leg explosive power.

4. The mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that, The pre-tightening drive unit uses a micro high-power density motor, which self-locks after power failure after pre-tightening, and the energy storage power consumption is ≤0.5W; the burst release controller has a response time of ≤5ms, and the trigger mechanism can achieve an acceleration time of ≤0.3s from 0 to 10m / s, with the starting thrust being ≥100% higher than that of traditional mechanisms.

5. The mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that, The overall structure is made of carbon fiber composite material, which reduces the weight by ≥35% compared to the traditional single spine mechanism under the same load, making it suitable for high-speed quadruped robot torso power output scenarios.