3.0

credits

Average Course Rating

Recent advancements in robotics highlight two crucial concepts: “soft robots” and “uncertainty / stochasticity”, both of which are implied by the term “flexible” in the course. Examples include continuum/hyper-redundant robots used in the medical applications. This course will explore techniques for modeling these flexible robotic systems, with a particular emphasis on the geometric descriptions necessary for such modeling. Key topics will include kinematics and dynamics of a rigid body, Gaussian distribution and probability, differential geometry, introductory Lie group theory, the general theory of elastic rods, and stochastic equations of motion. Additional topics will be covered as time permits.