Autonomous helicopter flight represents a challenging control problem, with complex, noisy, dynamics. In this paper, we describe a successful application of reinforcement learning to autonomous helicopter flight. We then use the model to learn to hover in place, and to fly a number of maneuvers taken from an RC helicopter competition.

What inspired you to take an interest in robots? I've always played with robots. For example, I remember a competition in high school where my friends and I built a robotic arm to move the chess pieces on the chessboard. It seems very trivial now, but way back then, the robots were all primitive and as high school students, we thought that building a robot that could do that was a big deal. Graduate students Ashutosh Saxena, left, and Morgan Quigley, center, and Ng were part of a large effort to develop a robot to see an unfamiliar object and ascertain the best spot to grasp it.