Power electronics and batteries in the base allow for 4 to 8 hours of typical autonomy, depending on the operational situation and task being performed. The system can draw 2kW peak power and 1kW continuously. Smart battery technology allows for computer monitoring of charge state and fast charges from a 110/220VAC electrical outlet. The computer electronics and all of the motor drives are located in the back of the torso.
All wiring is designed to be internal to the robot structure, although the first prototype still contains external loops across the elbow and shoulder joints. The gripper, since it features continuous rotation, has a small multi-slipring connector for motor power and encoder signal transfer.
The software communications architecture is a flexible and extensible system that handles data flow between functional modules. The communication layer handles inter process communication on one computer and across many computers, enabling the robot to leverage computer resources both on and off the robot. The layer is implemented on different operating systems and programming languages for maximal flexibility.
The prototype has two computers onboard. One computer handles non real-time functions, and the other computer runs a real-time operating system based on Linux and RTAI and implements a full dynamic model of the robot. This computer communicates in real time with the motor drive stacks over wired Ethernet at a 1 kHz rate for each motor.
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