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Evidence from experimental studies shows that oscillations due to electro-mechanical coupling can be generated spontaneously in smooth muscle cells. Such cellular dynamics are known as \textit{pacemaker dynamics}. In this article we address…
Artificial muscles play a crucial role in musculoskeletal robotics and prosthetics to approximate the force-generating functionality of biological muscle. However, current artificial muscle systems are typically limited to either…
The one-to-one mapping of control inputs to actuator outputs results in elaborate routing architectures that limit how complex fluidic soft robot behaviours can currently become. Embodied intelligence can be used as a tool to counteract…
We introduce and analyze a model for self-reconfigurable robots made up of unit-cube modules. Compared to past models, our model aims to newly capture two important practical aspects of real-world robots. First, modules often do not occupy…
Active inference, a theoretical construct inspired by brain processing, is a promising alternative to control artificial agents. However, current methods do not yet scale to high-dimensional inputs in continuous control. Here we present a…
Robots that can operate autonomously in a human living environment are necessary to have the ability to handle various tasks flexibly. One crucial element is coordinated bimanual movements that enable functions that are difficult to perform…
Mechanical systems exhibit complex dynamical behavior from harmonic oscillations to chaotic motion. The dynamics undergo qualitative changes due to changes to internal system parameters like stiffness and changes to external forcing.…
Given the complexity and nonlinearity inherent in traffic dynamics within vehicular platoons, there exists a critical need for a modeling methodology with high accuracy while concurrently achieving physical analyzability. Currently, there…
Many aspects of the study of protein folding and dynamics have been affected by the recent advances in machine learning. Methods for the prediction of protein structures from their sequences are now heavily based on machine learning tools.…
Machine learning has long since become a keystone technology, accelerating science and applications in a broad range of domains. Consequently, the notion of applying learning methods to a particular problem set has become an established and…
Learning motor control for muscle-driven musculoskeletal models is hindered by the computational cost of biomechanically accurate simulation and the scarcity of validated, open full-body models. Here we present MuscleMimic, an open-source…
With their unique combination of characteristics - an energy density almost 100 times that of human muscle, and a power density of 5.3 kW/kg, similar to a jet engine's output - Nylon artificial muscles stand out as particularly apt for…
Architected materials can achieve enhanced properties compared to their plain counterparts. Specific architecting serves as a powerful design lever to achieve targeted behavior without changing the base material. Thus, the connection…
Real-time proprioception is a challenging problem for soft robots, which have almost infinite degrees-of-freedom in body deformation. When multiple actuators are used, it becomes more difficult as deformation can also occur on actuators…
The position-based dynamics (PBD) algorithm is a popular and versatile technique for real-time simulation of deformable bodies, but is only applicable to forces that can be expressed as linearly compliant constraints. In this work, we…
The concept of creating all-mechanical soft microrobotic systems has great potential to address outstanding challenges in biomedical applications, and introduce more sustainable and multifunctional products. To this end, magnetic fields and…
Design of robots at the small scale is a trial-and-error based process, which is costly and time-consuming. There are few dynamic simulation tools available to accurately predict the motion or performance of untethered microrobots as they…
This paper explores learning emulators for parameter estimation with uncertainty estimation of high-dimensional dynamical systems. We assume access to a computationally complex simulator that inputs a candidate parameter and outputs a…
To achieve real-world functionality, robots must have the ability to carry out decision-making computations. However, soft robots stretch and therefore need a solution other than rigid computers. Examples of embedding computing capacity…
Modern robotics is gravitating toward increasingly collaborative human robot interaction. Tools such as acceleration policies can naturally support the realization of reactive, adaptive, and compliant robots. These tools require us to model…