Fault-Tolerant Movement Control for Hexapod Robots Based on Central Pattern Generator

In the context of hexapod robots operating in complex unstructured environments, there is a risk of mechanical damage to the legs. Classic gaits are ineffective for robots with damaged legs, leading to poor stability. This paper proposes a novel fault-tolerant movement control method based on Central Pattern Generator (CPG) for hexapod robots with a detached leg. Firstly, this method introduces a fault-tolerant triangular gait with different frequencies and adjusts the initial angles of the robot's joints. Next, the fault-tolerant foot trajectories are generated by a CPG network controller centered on an improved Hopf oscillator. Finally, the inverse kinematics model is employed to solve for the angle trajectories of motor joints. Simulation results on flat terrain demonstrate that this method maintains the robot's roll and pitch angles within a range of ± 1°, while reducing energy consumption by 23% compared to the classic gait. This verifies the effectiveness of the proposed method in improving the movement performance of hexapod robots with a detached leg.