MR_Go: A Magnetorheological Quadruped Robot for Energy-Efficient, High-Payload, and Impact-Tolerant Planetary Exploration
Erwin Ang Tien Yew, Zhehan Tao, Haorui Cai, Zhongyuan Kong, Bingbing Zhou, Liang Zhang, Shuaishuai Sun
Abstract
Planetary exploration missions increasingly rely on agile robotic platforms capable of traversing unstructured and unpredictable terrain. While quadruped robots offer superior mobility compared to wheeled rovers, their deployment in long-duration and shock-load missions remains limited, due to the limitations of high power consumption, low payload-to-weight ratio, and poor resilience to impact and overloads with the conventional actuator. To address these challenges, we present the MR_Go, a magnetorheological (MR)-based quadruped robot featuring real-time joint damping modulation to enhance energy efficiency, impact mitigation, and load-bearing capability. Built upon the Unitree Go1 platform, MR_Go achieves a 400% increase in payload-to-mass ratio with only 40 W of MR activation power and can sustain 20 kg payloads without continuous motor engagement. Experiments conducted in lunar-analog terrain demonstrate that <bold xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">MR_Go</b> extends mission battery life by <bold xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">18%</b>, reduces peak joint torque by <bold xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">10%</b> during an 80 cm cliff drop, and maintains superior thermal stability under prolonged loading. These results highlight the potential of MR-based hybrid actuation for enabling durable and energy-efficient quadruped systems suited for extended planetary operations.
BibTeX
@inproceedings{ral2026_mrgoamagnetorheo,
title = {MR_Go: A Magnetorheological Quadruped Robot for Energy-Efficient, High-Payload, and Impact-Tolerant Planetary Exploration},
author = {Erwin Ang Tien Yew and Zhehan Tao and Haorui Cai and Zhongyuan Kong and Bingbing Zhou and Liang Zhang and Shuaishuai Sun},
booktitle = {RA-L 2026},
year = {2026}
}