One of the toughest challenges for humanoid robots has been quick locomotion. Equipment like skates are increasingly being used to speed up location, but they also make the system highly unstable. In a team of two, we developed a statically stable continuous contact-based skating technique, as our thesis for a minor degree in robotics.

This technique (as shown in the video) allows a humanoid robot to propel itself forward using regular skates without raising its legs at any point. This motion relies on the non-holonomic nature of the wheel (or a blade), i.e., it does not allow motion perpendicular to the direction it is facing. Thus, as both the legs are in contact with the ground at all times, the gait is statically stable at all time. These type of gaits are effective in structured environments such as building and roads where the surface is leveled to a certain extent.