Related papers: Galileo: A Pseudospectral Collocation Framework fo…
Quadrupedal robots excel in mobility, navigating complex terrains with agility. However, their complex control systems present challenges that are still far from being fully addressed. In this paper, we introduce the use of Sample-Based…
Planning for legged-wheeled machines is typically done using trajectory optimization because of many degrees of freedom, thus rendering legged-wheeled planners prone to falling prey to bad local minima. We present a combined sampling and…
Serially connected robots are promising candidates for performing tasks in confined spaces such as search-and-rescue in large-scale disasters. Such robots are typically limbless, and we hypothesize that the addition of limbs could improve…
This paper presents a deep learning framework designed to enhance the grasping capabilities of quadrupeds equipped with arms, with a focus on improving precision and adaptability. Our approach centers on a sim-to-real methodology that…
Legged robotic systems can play an important role in real-world applications due to their superior load-bearing capabilities, enhanced autonomy, and effective navigation on uneven terrain. They offer an optimal trade-off between mobility…
Pseudospectral collocation methods have proven to be powerful tools to solve optimal control problems. While these methods generally assume the dynamics is given in the first order form $\dot{x} = f (x, u, t)$, where x is the state and u is…
This paper addresses the challenge of terrain-adaptive dynamic locomotion in humanoid robots, a problem traditionally tackled by optimization-based methods or reinforcement learning (RL). Optimization-based methods, such as model-predictive…
Legged robots are popular candidates for missions in challenging terrains due to the wide variety of locomotion strategies they can employ. Terrain classification is a key enabling technology for autonomous legged robots, as it allows the…
Due to their ability to adapt to different terrains, quadruped robots have drawn much attention in the research field of robot learning. Legged mobile manipulation, where a quadruped robot is equipped with a robotic arm, can greatly enhance…
Legged robots have shown remarkable advantages in navigating uneven terrain. However, realizing effective locomotion and manipulation tasks on quadruped robots is still challenging. In addition, object and terrain parameters are generally…
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 a data-driven strategy to streamline the deployment of model-based controllers in legged robotic hardware platforms. Our approach leverages a model-free safe learning algorithm to automate the tuning of control gains,…
Reinforcement learning (RL) has demonstrated impressive performance in legged locomotion over various challenging environments. However, due to the sim-to-real gap and lack of explainability, unconstrained RL policies deployed in the real…
Generation of robust trajectories for legged robots remains a challenging task due to the underlying nonlinear, hybrid and intrinsically unstable dynamics which needs to be stabilized through limited contact forces. Furthermore,…
Differential drive robots are widely used in various scenarios thanks to their straightforward principle, from household service robots to disaster response field robots. There are several types of driving mechanisms for real-world…
Navigating cluttered environments is a challenging task for any mobile system. Existing approaches for ground-based mobile systems primarily focus on small wheeled robots, which face minimal constraints with overhanging obstacles and cannot…
Locomotion mechanics of legged robots are suitable when pacing through difficult terrains. Recognising terrains for such robots are important to fully yoke the versatility of their movements. Consequently, robotic terrain classification…
The ability to walk in new scenarios is a key milestone on the path toward real-world applications of legged robots. In this work, we introduce Meta Strategy Optimization, a meta-learning algorithm for training policies with latent variable…
With the development of robotics, ground robots are no longer limited to planar motion. Passive height variation due to complex terrain and active height control provided by special structures on robots require a more general navigation…
We propose a method to generate actuation plans for a reduced order, dynamic model of bipedal running. This method explicitly enforces robustness to ground uncertainty. The plan generated is not a fixed body trajectory that is aggressively…