Matt Zucker

I am interested in developing planning and control algorithms for complex legged robots and mobile manipulators. I believe that high-level planning, which reasons over sequences of discrete behavior primitives, is the best way to plan for such systems. My work focuses on leveraging optimization and machine learning techniques, as well as re-using previous computation, in order to produce fast planning software.

I am a member of the Planning and Autonomy Lab and LAIRLab, and I particpate in the DARPA Learning Locomotion Project.

This page has a list of publications as well as some recent research videos. Here is my CV.

Publications

CHOMP: Gradient Optimization Techniques for Efficient Motion Planning

Nathan Ratliff, Matt Zucker, J. Andrew Bagnell, and Siddhartha Srinivasa
Proc. IEEE Int'l Conf. on Robotics and Automation, May, 2009.

Get PDF

Adaptive Workspace Biasing for Sampling Based Planners

Matt Zucker, James Kuffner, and J. Andrew Bagnell
Proc. IEEE Int'l Conf. on Robotics and Automation, May, 2008.

Get PDF

Multipartite RRTs for Rapid Replanning in Dynamic Environments

Matt Zucker, James Kuffner, and Michael Branicky
Proc. IEEE Int. Conf. Robotics and Automation, April, 2007.

Get PDF

Improved Motion Planning Speed and Safety using Regions of Inevitable Collision

Nicholas Chan, James Kuffner, and Matt Zucker
17th CISM-IFToMM Symposium on Robot Design, Dynamics, and Control (RoManSy'08), July, 2008.

Get PDF

Approximating State-Space Obstacles for Non-Holonomic Motion Planning

Matt Zucker
tech. report CMU-RI-TR-06-27, May 2006.

Get PDF

Videos

Learning Locomotion Phase III Final - 7/14/2009

Get the Flash Player to see this player.
This video demonstrates traversing a variety of rough terrains. This revision of the planning and control software is what was submitted for the final trials for Phase III of the DARPA Learning Locomotion project. MP4 | YouTube

CHOMP Trajectory Optimization - 9/15/2008

Get the Flash Player to see this player.
Movie illustrating how CHOMP optimizes footstep trajectories. MP4

Terrain W - 1/19/2008

Get the Flash Player to see this player.
Crossing the most difficult terrain from Learning Locomotion Phase II. MP4

Steps - 12/17/2007

Get the Flash Player to see this player.
This movie shows LittleDog ascending three steps of approximately 7cm height. MP4

Fast walk - 12/04/2007

Get the Flash Player to see this player.
This is a crawl gait running in excess of 17m/s. DivX AVI