12 papers
Learning with Object-centric Representations of Tactile Interactive Perception for Robot Manipulation
Xinyi Yang, Zilin Si, Zhuowei Xu +2
Implicit object properties that are difficult to directly infer from vision, such as material, container contents, or softness, can be revealed through tactile sensing and explorat…
OGPO: Sample Efficient Full-Finetuning of Generative Control Policies
Sarvesh Patil, Mitsuhiko Nakamoto, Manan Agarwal +14
Generative control policies (GCPs), such as diffusion- and flow-based control policies, have emerged as effective parameterizations for robot learning. This work introduces Off-pol…
Inference-time Policy Steering via Vision and Touch
Yilin Wu, Zilin Si, Zeynep Temel +2
Inference-time steering adapts pre-trained generative robot policies during deployment by verifying candidate actions before execution. While prior methods typically perform this v…
TacO: Benchmarking Tactile Sensors for Object Manipulation
Anya Zorin, Zilin Si, Myungsun Park +11
Vision-based learning from demonstrations has achieved remarkable success in enabling robots to perform manipulation tasks and high-level semantic reasoning, yet it remains insuffi…
TerraSkipper: A Centimeter-Scale Robot for Multi-Terrain Skipping and Crawling
Shashwat Singh, Sheri Zhang, Spencer Matonis +1
Mudskippers are unique amphibious fish capable of locomotion in diverse environments, including terrestrial surfaces, aquatic habitats, and highly viscous substrates such as mud. T…
Interdisciplinary Workshop on Mechanical Intelligence: Summary Report
Victoria A. Webster-Wood, Nicholas Gravish, Amir Alavi +37
This report provides a summary of the outcomes of the Interdisciplinary Workshop on Mechanical Intelligence held in 2024. Mechanical Intelligence (MI) represents the phenomenon tha…
PuffyBot: An Untethered Shape Morphing Robot for Multi-environment Locomotion
Shashwat Singh, Zilin Si, Zeynep Temel
Amphibians adapt their morphologies and motions to accommodate movement in both terrestrial and aquatic environments. Inspired by these biological features, we present PuffyBot, an…
From Fold to Function: Simulation-Driven Design of Origami Mechanisms
Tianhui Han, Shashwat Singh, Sarvesh Patil +1
Origami-inspired mechanisms can transform flat sheets into functional three-dimensional dynamic structures that are lightweight, compact, and capable of complex motion. These prope…
A multi-modal tactile fingertip design for robotic hands to enhance dexterous manipulation
Zhuowei Xu, Zilin Si, Kevin Zhang +2
Tactile sensing is critical for enhancing manipulation precision and versatility, but its adoption in robotic hands remains limited due to high sensor costs, manufacturing and inte…
SkinGrip: An Adaptive Soft Robotic Manipulator with Capacitive Sensing for Whole-Limb Bed Bathing Assistance
Fukang Liu, Kavya Puthuveetil, Akhil Padmanabha +3
Robotics presents a promising opportunity for enhancing bathing assistance, potentially to alleviate labor shortages and reduce care costs, while offering consistent and gentle car…
Enhancing Dexterity in Robotic Manipulation via Hierarchical Contact Exploration
Xianyi Cheng, Sarvesh Patil, Zeynep Temel +2
Planning robot dexterity is challenging due to the non-smoothness introduced by contacts, intricate fine motions, and ever-changing scenarios. We present a hierarchical planning fr…
Learning to Singulate Layers of Cloth using Tactile Feedback
Sashank Tirumala, Thomas Weng, Daniel Seita +3
Robotic manipulation of cloth has applications ranging from fabrics manufacturing to handling blankets and laundry. Cloth manipulation is challenging for robots largely due to thei…