DTC: Deep Tracking Control

Fuente: arXiv
Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Jenelten, Fabian, He, Junzhe, Farshidian, Farbod, Hutter, Marco
Format: Preprint
Published: 2023
Subjects:
Online Access:
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1866914646620897280
author Jenelten, Fabian
He, Junzhe
Farshidian, Farbod
Hutter, Marco
author_facet Jenelten, Fabian
He, Junzhe
Farshidian, Farbod
Hutter, Marco
contents Legged locomotion is a complex control problem that requires both accuracy and robustness to cope with real-world challenges. Legged systems have traditionally been controlled using trajectory optimization with inverse dynamics. Such hierarchical model-based methods are appealing due to intuitive cost function tuning, accurate planning, generalization, and most importantly, the insightful understanding gained from more than one decade of extensive research. However, model mismatch and violation of assumptions are common sources of faulty operation. Simulation-based reinforcement learning, on the other hand, results in locomotion policies with unprecedented robustness and recovery skills. Yet, all learning algorithms struggle with sparse rewards emerging from environments where valid footholds are rare, such as gaps or stepping stones. In this work, we propose a hybrid control architecture that combines the advantages of both worlds to simultaneously achieve greater robustness, foot-placement accuracy, and terrain generalization. Our approach utilizes a model-based planner to roll out a reference motion during training. A deep neural network policy is trained in simulation, aiming to track the optimized footholds. We evaluate the accuracy of our locomotion pipeline on sparse terrains, where pure data-driven methods are prone to fail. Furthermore, we demonstrate superior robustness in the presence of slippery or deformable ground when compared to model-based counterparts. Finally, we show that our proposed tracking controller generalizes across different trajectory optimization methods not seen during training. In conclusion, our work unites the predictive capabilities and optimality guarantees of online planning with the inherent robustness attributed to offline learning.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2309_15462
institution arXiv
publishDate 2023
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle DTC: Deep Tracking Control
Jenelten, Fabian
He, Junzhe
Farshidian, Farbod
Hutter, Marco
Robotics
Machine Learning
Systems and Control
Legged locomotion is a complex control problem that requires both accuracy and robustness to cope with real-world challenges. Legged systems have traditionally been controlled using trajectory optimization with inverse dynamics. Such hierarchical model-based methods are appealing due to intuitive cost function tuning, accurate planning, generalization, and most importantly, the insightful understanding gained from more than one decade of extensive research. However, model mismatch and violation of assumptions are common sources of faulty operation. Simulation-based reinforcement learning, on the other hand, results in locomotion policies with unprecedented robustness and recovery skills. Yet, all learning algorithms struggle with sparse rewards emerging from environments where valid footholds are rare, such as gaps or stepping stones. In this work, we propose a hybrid control architecture that combines the advantages of both worlds to simultaneously achieve greater robustness, foot-placement accuracy, and terrain generalization. Our approach utilizes a model-based planner to roll out a reference motion during training. A deep neural network policy is trained in simulation, aiming to track the optimized footholds. We evaluate the accuracy of our locomotion pipeline on sparse terrains, where pure data-driven methods are prone to fail. Furthermore, we demonstrate superior robustness in the presence of slippery or deformable ground when compared to model-based counterparts. Finally, we show that our proposed tracking controller generalizes across different trajectory optimization methods not seen during training. In conclusion, our work unites the predictive capabilities and optimality guarantees of online planning with the inherent robustness attributed to offline learning.
title DTC: Deep Tracking Control
topic Robotics
Machine Learning
Systems and Control
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2309.15462