ArachnoBot — Terrain-Adaptive Robot

Built a terrain-adaptive walking robot with 4-bar linkage legs.

Overview

I designed and built ArachnoBot for the University of Illinois Engineering Open House. Its 4-bar linkage legs let it move over uneven surfaces without complex joint-level control. It won 1st Place and the Distinguished Robotics award at ASME.

Mechanism Design

The 4-bar linkage converts rotary motion into a walking gait that lifts each leg over obstacles and maintains stable ground contact.

This keeps the control system simple: a single motor drives the linkage while the geometry sets the gait.

Demonstration

I demonstrated the robot at Engineering Open House and explained the design to visitors.