Continuous high-speed climbing control and leg mechanism for an eight-legged stair-climbing vehicle

This paper proposes a control algorithm for continuous high-speed stair climbing for an eight-legged stair-climbing vehicle, and discusses a new leg mechanism to implement this control. The control algorithm was first simulated to verify its effectiveness, and then implemented with a vehicle prototype, which continuously climbed a set of steps at constant speed under an applied load of 30 kg. A belt-drive mechanism with a long leg-stroke was developed, along with a mechanism to control the orientation of the passive wheels; both were experimentally verified. The success of these experiments indicates that the new control algorithm and leg mechanism are promising components for practical stair-climbing applications in the future.