About: Hello, my name is Toglefritz. That’s obviously not my real name; my real name is Scott, but on the Internet I use the nom de plume, Toglefritz. I like to make things and I like to share my work with others. I …

This Instructable will show you how to build a quadruped robot from scratch using 3D printed parts and off-the-shelf electronic components.

Robot Design

A quadruped robot is a robot with four legs. There are any number of ways a four-legged robot can be designed. The robot we will be building in this Instructable has four legs arranged symmetrically around the body.

Each leg is actuated by three servos: one for forward/backward movement, one for up/down movement, and one to bend the leg in the middle. This gives the robot three degrees of freedom, allowing it to move in any direction.

The robot is also equipped with a NeoPixel LED ring that functions as the robot's eye. This part is used mostly for aesthetics, however it is also useful for making it easier to identify the front side of the robot since it is symmetrical. Giving the robot a kind of "face" also gives it some anthropomorphism.

All of the design work for the quadruped was done in Autodesk Fusion 360.

Motion

Since the quadruped can articulate each of its four legs with three degrees of freedom, it has a highly flexible range of motion.

Robot Construction

The quadruped is constructed mostly from 3D printed frame parts and readily available hardware. The electronics used to power and control the robot are normal (albeit high quality) hobby servos and Arduino-compatible microcontrollers.

Robot Control

The robot is controlled with a wireless third-party Playstation 2 controller.