Multibody system dynamics for bio-inspired locomotion: from geometric structures to computational aspects.

This article presents a set of generic tools for multibody system dynamics devoted to the study of bio-inspired locomotion in robotics. First, archetypal examples from the field of bio-inspired robot locomotion are presented to prepare the ground for further discussion. The general problem of locomotion is then stated. In considering this problem, we progressively draw a unified geometric picture of locomotion dynamics. For that purpose, we start from the model of discrete mobile multibody systems (MMSs) that we progressively extend to the case of continuous and finally soft systems. Beyond these theoretical aspects, we address the practical problem of the efficient computation of these models by proposing a Newton-Euler-based approach to efficient locomotion dynamics with a few illustrations of creeping, swimming, and flying.