Related papers: A Co-Design Framework for High-Performance Jumping…
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…
Wheeled-legged robots combine the efficiency of wheels with the versatility of legs, but face significant energy optimization challenges when navigating diverse environments. In this work, we present a hierarchical control framework that…
In this paper, we present a concurrent and scalable trajectory optimization method to improve the quality of robot-assisted manufacturing. Our method simultaneously optimizes tool orientations, kinematic redundancy, and waypoint timing on…
The joint optimization of physical parameters and controllers in robotic systems is challenging. This is due to the difficulties of predicting the effect that changes in physical parameters have on final performances. At the same time,…
The design of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) and their docking stations has been a popular research topic for several decades. Although many AUV and dock designs have been proposed, materialized, and commercialized, most of these…
Impressive animal locomotion capabilities are mediated by the co-evolution of the skeletal morphology and muscular properties. Legged robot performance would also likely benefit from the co-optimization of actuators and leg morphology.…
This paper addresses the design and development of an autonomous biped robot using master and worker combination of controllers. In addition, the bot is wirelessly controllable. The work presented here explains the walking pattern, system…
This paper is dedicated to the development of a novel adaptive torsion spring mechanism for optimizing energy consumption in legged robots. By adjusting the equilibrium position and stiffness of the spring, the system improves energy…
This paper introduces a control co-design (CCD) framework to simultaneously explore the physical parameters and control spaces for a hydro-kinetic turbine (HKT) rotor optimization. The optimization formulation incorporates a coupled…
Humanoid robots deployed in industrial environments are required to perform load-carrying transportation tasks that tightly couple locomotion and manipulation. However, achieving stable and robust locomotion under varying payloads and…
Jumping and hopping locomotion are efficient means of traversing unstructured rugged terrain with the former being the focus of roboticists; a focus that has recently been changing. This focus has led to significant performance and…
High-speed legged navigation in discrete and geometrically complex environments is a challenging task because of the high-degree-of-freedom dynamics and long-horizon, nonconvex nature of the optimization problem. In this work, we propose a…
For robot manipulation, both the controller and end-effector design are crucial. Soft grippers are generalizable by deforming to different geometries, but designing such a gripper and finding its grasp pose remains challenging. In this…
Legged robots offer several advantages when navigating unstructured environments, but they often fall short of the efficiency achieved by wheeled robots. One promising strategy to improve their energy economy is to leverage their natural…
Aerial transportation robots using suspended cables have emerged as versatile platforms for disaster response and rescue operations. To maximize the capabilities of these systems, robots need to aggressively fly through tightly constrained…
Rapid robotic system development sets a demand for multi-disciplinary methods and tools to explore and compare design alternatives. In this paper, we present collaborative modeling that combines discrete-event models of controller software…
Nonlinearity in dynamics has long been a major challenge in robotics, often causing significant performance degradation in existing control algorithms. For example, the navigation of bipedal robots can exhibit nonlinear behaviors even under…
We present a control framework that enables humanoid robots to perform collaborative transportation tasks with a human partner. The framework supports both translational and rotational motions, which are fundamental to co-transport…
A force balanced manipulator design based on the closed chain planar five bar linkage is developed and experimentally validated. We present 2 variants as a modular design: Forbal-2, a planar 2-DOF manipulator, and its extension to 5-DOF…
This paper proposes a fully decentralized model predictive control (MPC) framework with control barrier function (CBF) constraints for safety-critical trajectory planning in multi-robot legged systems. The incorporation of CBF constraints…