Leonardo — Bipedal Walking Robot
A bipedal robot that can fly, slackline, and skateboard (Science Robotics, 3.8M+ views)
I was part of the team that developed Leonardo, a bipedal walking robot that can fly, slackline, and skateboard. Published in Science Robotics and featured in a Veritasium video with over 3.8 million views, the project combines legged locomotion with aerial thrusters to achieve dynamic balancing on challenging surfaces.
The main controller is based on a simplified model: inverted pendulum with propellers. The model is able to capture the main dynamics of the robot, and the controller is able to stabilize the robot upright. While flying, the robot is using a standard quadcopter controller. The robot has sensors in its feet to detect the ground.
Fun fact: This was also my COVID project, so a lot of the fancy demonstrations like skateboarding and slackling were a form of entertainment and keeping myself busy while I was stuck at home.
Publication: Kim, K.*, Spieler, P.*, Lupu, E. S., Ramezani, A., & Chung, S.-J. (2021). A bipedal walking robot that can fly, slackline, and skateboard. Science Robotics.