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Legged robots are typically in rigid contact with the environment at multiple locations, which add a degree of complexity to their control. We present a method to control the motion and a subset of the contact forces of a floating-base…
In this work we present a trajectory Optimization framework for whole-body motion planning through contacts. We demonstrate how the proposed approach can be applied to automatically discover different gaits and dynamic motions on a…
Soft robots offer a frontier in robotics with enormous potential for safe human-robot interaction and agility in uncertain environments. A stepping stone towards unlocking their potential is a control theory tailored to soft robotics,…
This paper addresses several critical stages of designing a walking robot, including optimal structural synthesis, introducing a novel 'rational' mechanical structure aimed at enhancing efficiency and simplifying control system, while…
Iterative linear quadratic regulator (iLQR) has gained wide popularity in addressing trajectory optimization problems with nonlinear system models. However, as a model-based shooting method, it relies heavily on an accurate system model to…
Wheeled-legged robots have the potential for highly agile and versatile locomotion. The combination of legs and wheels might be a solution for any real-world application requiring rapid, and long-distance mobility skills on challenging…
Impact mitigation is crucial to the stable locomotion of legged robots, especially in high-speed dynamic locomotion. This paper presents a leg locomotion system including the nonlinear active compliance control and the active impedance…
Motion planning trajectories for a multi-limbed robot to climb up walls requires a unique combination of constraints on torque, contact force, and posture. This paper focuses on motion planning for one particular setup wherein a six-legged…
Planning locomotion trajectories for legged microrobots is challenging because of their complex morphology, high frequency passive dynamics, and discontinuous contact interactions with their environment. Consequently, such research is often…
Robots generally have a structure that combines rotational joints and links in a serial fashion. On the other hand, various joint mechanisms are being utilized in practice, such as prismatic joints, closed links, and wire-driven systems.…
Simplified models are useful to increase the computational efficiency of a motion planning algorithm, but their lack of accuracy have to be managed. We propose two feasibility constraints to be included in a Single Rigid Body Dynamicsbased…
Planning a time-optimal trajectory for aerial robots is critical in many drone applications, such as rescue missions and package delivery, which have been widely researched in recent years. However, it still involves several challenges,…
Designing trajectories for manipulation through contact is challenging as it requires reasoning of object \& robot trajectories as well as complex contact sequences simultaneously. In this paper, we present a novel framework for…
This paper studies real-time motion planning and control for ball bumping motion with quadruped robots. To enable the quadruped to bump the flying ball with different initializations, we develop a nonlinear trajectory optimization-based…
A robot's ability to complete a task is heavily dependent on its physical design. However, identifying an optimal physical design and its corresponding control policy is inherently challenging. The freedom to choose the number of links,…
This paper presents a novel trajectory optimization formulation to solve the robotic assembly of the belt drive unit. Robotic manipulations involving contacts and deformable objects are challenging in both dynamic modeling and trajectory…
A robot's dynamics -- especially the degree and location of compliance -- can significantly affect performance and control complexity. Passive dynamics can be designed with good regions of attraction or limit cycles for a specific task, but…
In this paper, a reinforced soft robot prototype with a custom-designed actuator-space string encoder are created to investigate dynamic soft robotic trajectory tracking. The soft robot prototype embedded with the proposed adaptive…
This paper presents a state-of-the-art optimal controller for quadruped locomotion. The robot dynamics is represented using a single rigid body (SRB) model. A linear time-varying model predictive controller (LTV MPC) is proposed by using…
Legged robots with closed-loop kinematic chains are increasingly prevalent due to their increased mobility and efficiency. Yet, most motion generation methods rely on serial-chain approximations, sidestepping their specific constraints and…