Robotic systems driven by artificial muscles present unique challenges due to the nonlinear dynamics of actuators and the complex designs of mechanical structures. Traditional model-based controllers often struggle to achieve desired control performance in such systems. Deep reinforcement learning (DRL), a trending machine learning technique widely adopted in robot control, offers a promising alternative. However, integrating DRL into these robotic systems faces significant challenges, including the requirement for large amounts of training data and the inevitable sim-to-real gap when deployed to real-world robots. This paper proposes an efficient reinforcement learning control framework with sim-to-real transfer to address these challenges. Bootstrap and augmentation enhancements are designed to improve the data efficiency of baseline DRL algorithms, while a sim-to-real transfer technique, namely randomization of muscle dynamics, is adopted to bridge the gap between simulation and real-world deployment. Extensive experiments and ablation studies are conducted utilizing two string-type artificial muscle-driven robotic systems including a two degree-of-freedom robotic eye and a parallel robotic wrist, the results of which demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed learning control strategy.

Former U.S. Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund joins'Hannity' to sound off on bureaucratic failures leading up to riot. A January 6 defendant who was allegedly found with weapons and materials to make an explosive device just blocks from former President Barack Obama's home in Washington, D.C. last week threatened to blow up a van at a government facility and attempted to threaten a congressman, federal prosecutors said Tuesday. Taylor Taranto, 37, a Washington state resident, was wanted for allegedly participating in the Jan. 6 riot when he was taken into custody by Secret Service agents on June 29 in the Kalorama neighborhood of Washington D.C., according to court documents. The arrest came a day after he live-streamed himself on his public YouTube channel when he said he had a detonator and threatened to blow up his "self-driving" vehicle at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, which is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland, prosecutors said. Taylor Taranto, 37, an accused Jan. 6 rioter, was arrested last week with weapons near former President Barack Obama's home in Washington D.C., prosecutors said.