Design and construction of obstacle­-avoiding six-­legged robot

Abstract

A six-­legged robot (hexapod) was designed and constructed. The hexapod, which utilizes a tripod gait, can navigate an unknown area and avoid obstacles in the process. It uses three infrared (IR) proximity sensors for obstacle detection. Two sensors are used as antenna and the third one as proximity sensor at the rear of the hexapod to govern the backward movement. The test area measures 2 by 2 m². Four objects were placed in the test area to determine the functionality of the hexapod. The obstacles used were 40­ cm tall boxes. The hexapod performed the walking routine successfully when powered using an external power supply. It can move forward, backward, left and right avoiding obstacles.