Category: Robotics
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Physics-based aerodynamic modeling of drone formation flight (no CFD)
The rapid growth of autonomous aerial systems is driving the development of drone swarms capable of performing cooperative missions such as environmental monitoring, infrastructure inspection, search and rescue, and parcel delivery. As these applications increasingly rely on multiple drones operating in close proximity, aerodynamic interactions between their rotor wakes become an important factor affecting flight…
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Control of a Soft Mackerel-inspired Robot
This thesis focuses on the development of the control algorithm for a mackerel-inspired robot. The robot has a rigid head containing sensors and motors, a soft body made of silicone rubber with a TPU-made backbone, and a compliant caudal fin. The objective of this thesis is to develop a control algorithm using ROS2 to enable…
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Bridging Simulation and Reality for Autonomous Underwater Vehicles
Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUV) are subject to highly non-linear hydrodynamic forces, significant parametric uncertainty, and unpredictable environmental disturbances, all of which make robust low-level control a persistent open challenge. This thesis investigates control strategies for AUV motion control with a focus on robustness, the ability of a controller to maintain acceptable performance despite uncertainty in…
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Sensorless Transformer for Interaction Force Prediction and Estimation
While recent work has shown that generative AI models, like transformers, can be used to predict future interaction forces, given past recorded data, including recorded forces, many platforms lack force sensors or cannot reliably record past forces. To bridge this gap, this thesis aims to augment a transformer model so it can estimate current interaction…
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High level reasoning layer for a learning-based interaction force controller for autonomous polishing
This thesis proposes to equip an existing low-level predictive interaction force controller – developed for compliant tasks- with a high-level reasoning layer that autonomously manages polishing operations. While the force controller reliably regulates contact forces and nominal trajectories in real time, it lacks environmental context and goal awareness. The research goal is to design and…
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Vision-based policies for human-robot collaboration
This thesis investigates vision-based policies (e.g., VLAs, diffusion policy, flow matching) for human-robot collaboration. Despite standard collaborative controllers which make only use of the robot and (if available) human states, vision-based policies are trained additionally on images captured during the task execution. This provides the robot with the possibility to embed the perception of the…
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Development of an adaptive control architecture and test-bench validation for a knee joint of a transfemoral prosthesis
Motivation of the study. Transfemoral lower-limb amputations significantly impact mobility and quality of life, motivating continuous research and development in the field of active prosthetic devices. In recent years, powered transfemoral prostheses have emerged as a promising solution to restore more natural and efficient gait patterns by actively assisting the user during locomotion. A key…
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Systematic Validation and Expansion of Thermal Imaging Algorithms for Muscular Activity and Fatigue Monitoring
Contacts: Marta Gandolla, Andrea Dal Prete Location: Politecnico di Milano (Bovisa Campus) Motivation of the study: Monitoring muscle activation and fatigue is crucial for optimizing physical performance and preventing work-related musculoskeletal disorders, particularly in industrial environments where back-support exoskeletons are increasingly used. While Surface Electromyography (SEMG) is the traditional gold standard, it suffers from limitations such as…
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Virtual Model Control of a Soft Compliant Manipulator
Soft continuum robotic arms offer unparalleled dexterity and compliance over rigid bodies, thus facilitating safe and robust interactions with environments. These characteristics make them ideal for diverse applications, such as collaborative robotics or medical contexts. However, due to their virtually infinite degrees of freedom, control of these systems has always been a challenge. Various control…
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Bipedal gait analysis on planetary surfaces
Evaluation of the mechanical cost of transport for a bipedal robot during four bipedal locomotion gaits (walking, running, jumping, and skipping), performed in simulation within three different gravitational scenarios: on Earth, Mars, and the Moon. Contacts Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt German Aerospace Center Institute of Robotics and Mechatronics Münchner Straße 20 82234 Wessling…