Imagine a robot that can run like a dog without using motors. A team of researchers from TU Delft and EPFL has created a motor-free quadruped robot that mimics a dog’s running motion. Instead of depending on heavy, powered motors, this robot moves using springs, cables, and passive mechanics, making it much more energy-efficient.
Ph.D. scholar Francesco Stella, master’s student Mickael Achkar, and principal investigator Josie Hughes studied how real dogs move. They used machine learning to understand their movement patterns and then applied that knowledge to design a dog-like robot that moves in a similar way.
Inspired by nature it’s designed to run like a dog while not using the motors. Its movements are powered by a system of springs, cables, and passive mechanics, making it much more energy-efficient. PAWS mimics the movements without the need for any complicated setup, and is done with 4 motors and 12 joints. The robot does have motors, but they are only used for things like climbing or avoiding obstacles.
PAWS can walk and react to environments like a real dog. Because of a technique called inverse kinematics (IKs), it can do more than just passive walking, it can sit, jump, and run with impressive agility. This dog-like robot can walk on a treadmill and adjust its speed without using any motors. Instead, it simply reacts to the treadmill’s movement, like an animal adjusting to its surroundings.
