Hi All, As a reminder, this week's OSU Robotics seminar will be presented by Shai Revzen from the University of Michigan, on "Faster Models for Multi-Contact Motion". The seminar will be from 10-11am, followed by an 11-11:30 student-only Q&A session. The seminar will be an *in person* event, simulcast over Zoom, and will be immediately followed by a half-hour students-only Q&A session with the speaker. May 6, 10am LINC 268 https://oregonstate.zoom.us/j/93908195212?pwd=cEdoQVdac0JxMUpOSS9xVzZjVG5xUT... <https://oregonstate.zoom.us/j/93908195212?pwd=cEdoQVdac0JxMUpOSS9xVzZjVG5xUT09> ----------------- Seminar Title: Faster Models for Multi-Contact Motion Abstract: Multi-legged robots have many potential applications, but their motion planning presents a challenge - e.g. when slipping is involved, and when multi-contact collisions can occur. We present two recent advances that promise both a deeper insight into the physics of these systems, and large computational gains in their modeling. The first advance relates to the realization that simple "Stokesian" (first order) equations of motion govern multi-legged locomotion. Using this observation we created fast learning algorithms that identify highly predictive models for the interaction physics of multi-contact gaits from a few dozen cycles of motion. We have also produced simulation codes that are remarkably simple computationally, yet fit our experimental observations to 90% accuracy or better. The second advance relates to the resolution of multi-contact collisions. We have shown that although they are discontinuous, such collisions often admit a first order approximation that can be computed thousands of times faster than conventional collision detection methods. Combined, these methods may open up a new era of autonomous multi-legged and multi-fingered robotic systems. The work presented was funded by the NSF CMMI 1825918, ARO W911NF-14-1-0573, ARO W911NF-17-1-0306, and the D. Dan and Betty Kahn Michigan-Israel Partnership for Research and Education Autonomous Systems Mega-Project. Bio: Shai Revzen is an Associate Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science in the College of Engineering of the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. He also holds a courtesy faculty appointment in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, and positions in the Robotics Institute and the Applied Physics Program. Currently, he is also a Visiting Associate Professor in Mechanical Engineering in the Technion, Israel. He received his PhD in Integrative Biology from Berkeley, and a B.Sc. and M.Sc. from Hebrew University in Jerusalem. He did his postdoctoral work here, in the GRASP Laboratory of the University of Pennsylvania. Shai is also CSO of Acculine, an Israeli biomedical technology start-up. In his spare time he is in the second year of law school, studying toward a JD at Wayne State University. =========== Ross L. Hatton Associate Professor, Robotics and Mechanical Engineering Collaborative Robotics and Intelligent Systems Institute Oregon State University coris.oregonstate.edu <http://coris.oregonstate.edu/> research.engr.oregonstate.edu/lram/ <http://research.engr.oregonstate.edu/lram/> rosslhatton.com <http://rosslhatton.com/> ross.hatton@oregonstate.edu