Planning multicontact motions in a receding horizon fashion requires a value function to guide the planning with respect to the future, e.g., building momentum to traverse large obstacles. Traditionally, the value function is approximated by computing traj ...
In the past few years, Machine Learning (ML) techniques have ushered in a paradigm shift, allowing the harnessing of ever more abundant sources of data to automate complex tasks. The technical workhorse behind these important breakthroughs arguably lies in ...
Robots outside of the fenced factories have to deal with continuously changing environment, this requires fast and flexible modes of control. Planning methods or complex learning models can find optimal paths in complex surroundings, but they are computati ...
In this thesis, we study two closely related directions: robustness and generalization in modern deep learning. Deep learning models based on empirical risk minimization are known to be often non-robust to small, worst-case perturbations known as adversari ...
Modular robotics link the reliability of a centralised system with the adaptivity of a decentralised system.
It is difficult for a robot with a fixed shape to be able to perform many different types of tasks.
As the task space grows, the number of functi ...
Modern neuroscience research is generating increasingly large datasets, from recording thousands of neurons over long timescales to behavioral recordings of animals spanning weeks, months, or even years. Despite a great variety in recording setups and expe ...
The rise of robotic body augmentation brings forth new developments that will transform robotics, human-machine interaction, and wearable electronics. Extra robotic limbs, although building upon restorative technologies, bring their own set of challenges i ...
Distributed learning is the key for enabling training of modern large-scale machine learning models, through parallelising the learning process. Collaborative learning is essential for learning from privacy-sensitive data that is distributed across various ...
This paper builds up the skill of impact aware non prehensile manipulation through a hitting motion by allowing the robot arm to come in contact with the environment with parts other than its end effector. Hitting with other joints allows us to manipulate ...
Biohybrid systems in which robotic lures interact with animals have become compelling tools for probing and identifying the mechanisms underlying collective animal behavior. One key challenge lies in the transfer of social interaction models from simulatio ...
Machine learning (ML) enables artificial intelligent (AI) agents to learn autonomously from data obtained from their environment to perform tasks. Modern ML systems have proven to be extremely effective, reaching or even exceeding human intelligence.
Altho ...
In this PhD manuscript, we explore optimisation phenomena which occur in complex neural networks through the lens of 2-layer diagonal linear networks. This rudimentary architecture, which consists of a two layer feedforward linear network with a diagonal ...
Driven by the need for more efficient and seamless integration of physical models and data, physics -informed neural networks (PINNs) have seen a surge of interest in recent years. However, ensuring the reliability of their convergence and accuracy remains ...
Social insects, such as ants, termites, and honeybees, have evolved sophisticated societies where the collaborative efforts of "simple" individuals can lead to the emergence of complex dynamics. The reliance of each organism on the collective is so great t ...
Modern computing has enhanced our understanding of how social interactions shape collective behaviour in animal societies. Although analytical models dominate in studying collective behaviour, this study introduces a deep learning model to assess social in ...
In the rapidly evolving landscape of machine learning research, neural networks stand out with their ever-expanding number of parameters and reliance on increasingly large datasets. The financial cost and computational resources required for the training p ...
Photometric stereo, a computer vision technique for estimating the 3D shape of objects through images captured under varying illumination conditions, has been a topic of research for nearly four decades. In its general formulation, photometric stereo is an ...
In this thesis we explore the applications of projective geometry, a mathematical theory of the relation between 3D scenes and their 2D images, in modern learning-based computer vision systems. This is an interesting research question which contradicts the ...
In various robotics applications, the selection of function approximation methods greatly influences the feasibility and computational efficiency of algorithms. Tensor Networks (TNs), also referred to as tensor decomposition techniques, present a versatile ...
This doctoral thesis navigates the complex landscape of motion coordination and formation control within teams of rotary-wing Micro Aerial Vehicles (MAVs). Prompted by the intricate demands of real-world applications such as search and rescue or surveillan ...
