From stair-climbing robots to motion planning algorithms: UC San Diego at IROS 2018

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From stair-climbing robots to motion planning algorithms: UC San Diego at IROS 2018

From stair-climbing robots to algorithms that help robots navigate the world, researchers at the University of California San Diego are making a strong showing at the International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, or IROS 2018, which takes place Oct. 1 to 5 in Madrid, Spain.

“IROS is one of the premier conferences in robotics,” said Henrik Christensen, director of the Contextual Robotics Institute and a professor of computer science at UC San Diego. “I am very pleased to see that we are contributing key papers at this flagship conference.”

The theme for IROS 2018 is “Towards a Robotic Society,” focusing on advanced technological innovations such as human-robot interaction, humanoids, social robots, autonomous systems and intelligent perception, as well as on societal aspects including legal issues, regulations, robotics ethics, human–robot co-existence and employment.

Researchers at the Jacobs School at UC San Diego are developing robots that work better with humans; are more mobile; and are able to explore unfriendly terrain. For example, Daniel Yang, a Ph.D. student in the research group of mechanical engineering professor Thomas Bewley, designed and built a robot that can climb stairs.

Nicholas Gravish, also a mechanical engineering professor, is developing materials that would allow robots to swim better. Paul Glick, a Ph.D. student in the research group of Michael Tolley, also a professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, is developing adhesives for robotic limbs inspired by geckos. Ahmed Qureshi, a Ph.D. student in the research group of electrical engineering professor Michael Yip, is developing algorithms that help robots plan their motions.

Christensen, the director of the Contextual Robotics Institute at the Jacobs School, is organizing a tutorial session to improve the state of security in the robotics community. The session will feature remarks by Ruffin White, a UC San Diego computer science Ph.D. student, and will show researchers how to set up and use newer security features and tools within the ROS2 operating system.

Papers:

A minimalist Stair Climbing Robot (SCR) formed as a leg balancing & climbing Mobile Inverted Pendulum

Video: https://youtu.be/9_cLy09mzhM

Sliding-layer laminates: a robotic material enabling robust and adaptable undulatory locomotion

Video: http://gravishlab.ucsd.edu/videos/2018_IROS.mp4

Long-Duration Surface Anchoring With a Hybrid Electrostatic and Gecko-Inspired Adhesive

Deeply Informed Neural Sampling for Robot Motion Planning