Related papers: Improving Gradient Computation for Differentiable …
Numerical simulations provide key insights into many physical, real-world problems. However, while these simulations are solved on a full 3D domain, most analysis only require a reduced set of metrics (e.g. plane-level concentrations). This…
Common methods for learning robot dynamics assume motion is continuous, causing unrealistic model predictions for systems undergoing discontinuous impact and stiction behavior. In this work, we resolve this conflict with a smooth, implicit…
Simulation modeling of robots, objects, and environments is the backbone for all model-based control and learning. It is leveraged broadly across dynamic programming and model-predictive control, as well as data generation for imitation,…
Learning pair interactions from experimental or simulation data is of great interest for molecular simulations. We propose a general stochastic method for learning pair interactions from data using differentiable simulations (DiffSim).…
We introduce a modeling framework for manipulation planning based on the formulation of the dynamics as a projected dynamical system. This method uses implicit signed distance functions and their gradients to formulate an equivalent…
In this paper, we introduce proximal gradient temporal difference learning, which provides a principled way of designing and analyzing true stochastic gradient temporal difference learning algorithms. We show how gradient TD (GTD)…
Optimizing shapes and topology of physical devices is crucial for both scientific and technological advancements, given its wide-ranging implications across numerous industries and research areas. Innovations in shape and topology…
We present a method for system identification of flexible objects by measuring forces and displacement during interaction with a manipulating arm. We model the object's structure and flexibility by a chain of rigid bodies connected by…
Existing imitation learning (IL) methods such as inverse reinforcement learning (IRL) usually have a double-loop training process, alternating between learning a reward function and a policy and tend to suffer long training time and high…
The sample inefficiency of reinforcement learning (RL) remains a significant challenge in robotics. RL requires large-scale simulation and can still cause long training times, slowing research and innovation. This issue is particularly…
This paper proposes a new method for manipulating unknown objects through a sequence of non-prehensile actions that displace an object from its initial configuration to a given goal configuration on a flat surface. The proposed method…
Simulated virtual environments serve as one of the main driving forces behind developing and evaluating skill learning algorithms. However, existing environments typically only simulate rigid body physics. Additionally, the simulation…
We have recently demonstrated supervised deep learning methods for rapid generation of radiofrequency pulses in magnetic resonance imaging (https://doi.org/10.1002/mrm.27740, https://doi.org/10.1002/mrm.28667). Unlike the previous iterative…
In computed tomography (CT), the projection geometry used for data acquisition needs to be known precisely to obtain a clear reconstructed image. Rigid patient motion is a cause for misalignment between measured data and employed geometry.…
We consider the problem of sequential robotic manipulation of deformable objects using tools. Previous works have shown that differentiable physics simulators provide gradients to the environment state and help trajectory optimization to…
We consider the problem of estimating an object's physical properties such as mass, friction, and elasticity directly from video sequences. Such a system identification problem is fundamentally ill-posed due to the loss of information…
The performance of robots in high-level tasks depends on the quality of their lower-level controller, which requires fine-tuning. However, the intrinsically nonlinear dynamics and controllers make tuning a challenging task when it is done…
Multibody dynamics simulators are an important tool in many fields, including learning and control for robotics. However, many existing dynamics simulators suffer from inaccuracies when dealing with constrained mechanical systems due to…
Many engineering problems involve learning hidden dynamics from indirect observations, where the physical processes are described by systems of partial differential equations (PDE). Gradient-based optimization methods are considered…
A framework for performing event-driven, adaptive time step simulations of systems of rigid bodies interacting under stepped or terraced potentials in which the potential energy is only allowed to have discrete values is outlined. The…