target height
Towards Quadrupedal Jumping and Walking for Dynamic Locomotion using Reinforcement Learning
Olsen, Jørgen Anker, Pettersen, Lars Rønhaug, Alexis, Kostas
Abstract-- This paper presents a curriculum-based reinforcement learning framework for training precise and high-performance jumping policies for the robot'Jumper'. Separate policies are developed for vertical and horizontal jumps, leveraging a simple yet effective strategy. Next, a reference state initialization scheme is employed to accelerate the exploration of dynamic jumping behaviors without reliance on reference trajectories. We also present a walking policy that, when combined with the jumping policies, unlocks versatile and dynamic locomotion capabilities. Comprehensive testing validates walking on varied terrain surfaces and jumping performance that exceeds previous works, effectively crossing the Sim2Real gap. Experimental validation demonstrates horizontal jumps up to 1.25 m with centimeter accuracy and vertical jumps up to 1.0 m. Additionally, we show that with only minor modifications, the proposed method can be used to learn omnidirectional jumping. I. INTRODUCTION Quadruped robots can navigate complex terrains and overcome obstacles not only through walking but also through powerful jumps. The combination of robust walking and precise jumping capabilities is particularly valuable for planetary exploration [1], [2].
Target Height Estimation Using a Single Acoustic Camera for Compensation in 2D Seabed Mosaicking
Zhou, Xiaoteng, Wang, Yusheng, Mizuno, Katsunori
This letter proposes a novel approach for compensating target height data in 2D seabed mosaicking for low-visibility underwater perception. Acoustic cameras are effective sensors for sensing the marine environments due to their high-resolution imaging capabilities and robustness to darkness and turbidity. However, the loss of elevation angle during the imaging process results in a lack of target height information in the original acoustic camera images, leading to a simplistic 2D representation of the seabed mosaicking. In perceiving cluttered and unexplored marine environments, target height data is crucial for avoiding collisions with marine robots. This study proposes a novel approach for estimating seabed target height using a single acoustic camera and integrates height data into 2D seabed mosaicking to compensate for the missing 3D dimension of seabed targets. Unlike classic methods that model the loss of elevation angle to achieve seabed 3D reconstruction, this study focuses on utilizing available acoustic cast shadow clues and simple sensor motion to quickly estimate target height. The feasibility of our proposal is verified through a water tank experiment and a simulation experiment.