Optimal Trajectory Planning in a Vertically Undulating Snake Locomotion using Contact-implicit Optimization

Abstract: Contact-rich problems, such as snake robot locomotion, offer unexplored yet rich opportunities for optimization-based trajectory and acyclic contact planning. So far, a substantial body of control research has focused on emulating snake locomotion and replicating its distinctive movement patterns using shape functions that either ignore the complexity of interactions or focus on complex interactions with matter (e.g., burrowing movements). However, models and control frameworks that lie in between these two paradigms and are based on simple, fundamental rigid body dynamics, which alleviate the challenging contact and control allocation problems in snake locomotion, remain absent. This work makes meaningful contributions, substantiated by simulations and experiments, in the following directions: 1) introducing a reduced-order model based on Moreau's stepping-forward approach from differential inclusion mathematics, 2) verifying model accuracy, 3) experimental validation.