Spider Pig - Autonomous hexapod robot

Video:
https://youtu.be/N5_tMeEpJaA

Bachelor thesis project by a group of seven students (applied physics and electrical engineering) at Linköping University, Sweden.

The robot can navigate a simple maze (with both low and high obstacles) autonomously and be controlled manually with an Xbox controller connected to a laptop. It communicates with the laptop over Bluetooth.
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​The system is divided into three subsystems (control, sensors and communication), with one microcontroller each. The subsystems communicate via an SPI bus.

Its walking algorithm is based on inverse kinematics. A PD controller is used to keep it centered in corridors.
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​Main ​hardware:

• 1x PhantomX AX Metal Hexapod Mark II Kit (including 18x Dynamixel AX-12 servos, excluding the ArbotiX Robocontroller)
• ​3x ATmega1284p microcontrollers
• 7x IR distance sensors 
• 1x ultrasonic distance sensor
• 1x MPU-6050 IMU 
• LCD display
• FireFly Bluetooth modem
• Raspberry Pi 3 Model B
• Raspberry Pi Camera Board 5 MP