Designing Rhythmic Motions using Neural Oscillators

Neural oscillators offer simple and robust solutions to problems such as locomotion and dynamic manipu- lation. Unfortunately, the parameters of these systems are notoriously difficult to tune. This paper presents an analysis technique which alleviates the difficulty of tuning. The method is based on describing function analysis, and can predict the final motion of the sys- tem, analyze stability, and be used to determine ro- bustness to system changes. The method is illustrated using a number of design examples including an im- plementation of robot juggling.