ICRA 2024 Workshop on Co-design in Robotics: Theory, Practice, and Challenges
Overview
Robots are complex systems that must combine and integrate multiple coupled subsystems. The field of co-design seeks to understand how to jointly optimize robot subcomponents in order to produce a desired behavior. For example, one might consider how to jointly design the coupled kinematics and control architecture of the robot, taking into account their mutual dependencies, or how to design the robot mechanics and manufacturing methods. Co-design can also mean a process that engages end-users, stakeholders, and experts in the creation and development of robotic systems.
Robot co-design can offer various advantages – such as enhancing performance, efficiency, adaptability, usability, and user satisfaction – and there has been a large recent growth in both co-design methodologies and application areas. This workshop aims to gather researchers working in the various axes of co-design to discuss current trends, open problems, and challenges that the field is poised to tackle over the next 5-10 years.
Topics of interest include:
Methodology
Theoretical foundations of co-design
Multi-objective co-design
Analytical approaches for co-design
AI/ML based co-design
Experimental verification of co-design approaches
Software frameworks for co-design
Interactive co-design
Co-Design Scope
Manufacturing-aware co-design
Human-centered co-design
Sensor / actuator co-design
Control / mechanism co-design
Applications:
Legged locomotion
Soft robots
Canonical underactuated systems
Dexterous grippers
Flying robots
Underwater robots
Invited Speakers
Matei Ciocarlie (Columbia University)
Daniele Pucci (Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia)
Audrey Sedal (McGill University)
Charlie C. L. Wang (University of Manchester)
Call for Participation (Deadline extended to April 10)
We invite participants to submit 1-2 page abstracts on visionary ideas or recent results in robot co-design. Accepted abstracts will be featured in spotlight presentations (5 min. vignettes) or posters.
Abstracts may be submitted at https://forms.gle/eW54Y1xgHD5USCNy9 until April 10, 2024 (AOE). Acceptance notifications will be sent out 1-2 weeks after this date.
Travel Support
A limited number of travel grants are available to support participants who will present an abstract and participate in the discussion for the entire workshop. If you would like to be considered for the travel grant, please indicate on the abstract submission form by March 31.
Tentative Schedule
8:45 Welcome Remarks and Ground Rules
9:00 Overview and Seeding Thoughts (by organizers)
9:20 Short Talk
9:40 Short Talk
10:00 Coffee Break
10:30 Vignettes (from abstracts)
11:00 Breakout Discussion:
What are the technically challenging design areas that co-design should tackle over the next 5-10 years?
12:00 Reports and General Group Discussion
12:45 Lunch
14:00 Short Talk
14:20 Short Talk
14:40 Vignettes (from abstracts)
15:30 Coffee Break
16:00 Breakout Discussion:
What are the new areas of research / methods that will allow us to tackle these challenges?
17:00 Reports and General Group Discussion
17:30 Adjourn
Workshop Organizers
This workshop is jointly organized by the TC on Mechanisms and Design and the TC on Model-Based Optimization for Robotics.
TC on Mechanisms and Design
Cynthia Sung, University of Pennsylvania
Darwin Lau, Chinese University of Hong Kong
Hannah Stuart, University of California, Berkeley
Pauline Pounds, University of Queensland
TC on Model-Based Optimization for Robotics
Shivesh Kumar, Chalmers University of Technology/DFKI
Patrick Wensing, University of Notre Dame