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Jumping is essential for legged robots to traverse through difficult terrains. In this work, we propose a hierarchical framework that combines optimal control and reinforcement learning to learn continuous jumping motions for quadrupedal…
In this paper, we focus on the kangaroo, which has powerful legs capable of jumping and a soft and strong tail. To incorporate these unique structure into a robot for utilization, we propose a design method that takes into account both the…
Crawling is a common locomotion mechanism in soft robots and nonskeletal animals. In this work we propose modeling soft-robotic legged locomotion by approximating it with an equivalent articulated robot with elastic joints. For concreteness…
This paper presents the design, development and testing of GiAnt, an affordable hexapod which is inspired by the efficient motions of ants. The decision to model GiAnt after ants rather than other insects is rooted in ants' natural…
For humans, fast, efficient walking over flat ground represents the vast majority of locomotion that an individual experiences on a daily basis, and for an effective, real-world humanoid robot the same will likely be the case. In this work,…
Although recent years have seen significant progress of humanoid robots in walking and running, the frequent foot strikes with ground during these locomotion gaits inevitably generate high instantaneous impact forces, which leads to…
Symmetry manifests itself in legged locomotion in a variety of ways. No matter where a legged system begins to move periodically, the torso and limbs coordinate with each other's movements in a similar manner. Also, in many gaits observed…
Despite major advancements in control design that are robust to unplanned disturbances, bipedal robots are still susceptible to falling over and struggle to negotiate rough terrains. By utilizing thrusters in our bipedal robot, we can…
Robot controllers are often optimised for a single robot in a single environment. This approach proves brittle, as such a controller will often fail to produce sensible behavior for a new morphology or environment. In comparison, animal…
In this work, we provide a simulation framework to perform systematic studies on the effects of spinal joint compliance and actuation on bounding performance of a 16-DOF quadruped spined robot Stoch 2. Fast quadrupedal locomotion with…
Most legged robots are built with leg structures from serially mounted links and actuators and are controlled through complex controllers and sensor feedback. In comparison, animals developed multi-segment legs, mechanical coupling between…
Quadrupedal locomotion over complex terrain has been a long-standing research topic in robotics. While recent reinforcement learning-based locomotion methods improve generalizability and foot-placement precision, they rely on implicit…
This paper combines the fast Zero-Moment-Point (ZMP) approaches that work well in practice with the broader range of capabilities of a Trajectory Optimization formulation, by optimizing over body motion, footholds and Center of Pressure…
This paper presents an optimization-based motion planning methodology for snake robots operating in constrained environments. By using a reduced-order model, the proposed approach simplifies the planning process, enabling the optimizer to…
This study presents an analysis of experimental data from Harpy, a thruster-assisted bipedal robot developed at Northeastern University. The study examines data sets from trotting and jumping experiments to understand the fundamental…
Advances in legged robotics are strongly rooted in animal observations. A clear illustration of this claim is the generalization of Central Pattern Generators (CPG), first identified in the cat spinal cord, to generate cyclic motion in…
Snake robots offer exceptional mobility across extreme terrain inaccessible to conventional rovers, yet their highly articulated bodies present fundamental challenges for autonomous navigation in environments lacking external tracking…
Humans and animals are believed to use a very minimal set of trajectories to perform a wide variety of tasks including walking. Our main objective in this paper is two fold 1) Obtain an effective tool to realize these basic motion patterns…
Achieving animal-like agility is a longstanding goal in quadrupedal robotics. While recent studies have successfully demonstrated imitation of specific behaviors, enabling robots to replicate a broader range of natural behaviors in…
In this paper, we present a new model of biped locomotion which is composed of three linear pendulums (one per leg and one for the whole upper body) to describe stance, swing and torso dynamics. In addition to double support, this model has…