Predictive Control with Indirect Adaptive Laws for Payload Transportation by Quadrupedal Robots

Fuente: arXiv
Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Amanzadeh, Leila, Chunawala, Taizoon, Fawcett, Randall T., Leonessa, Alexander, Hamed, Kaveh Akbari
Format: Preprint
Published: 2026
Subjects:
Online Access:
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1866917327488942080
author Amanzadeh, Leila
Chunawala, Taizoon
Fawcett, Randall T.
Leonessa, Alexander
Hamed, Kaveh Akbari
author_facet Amanzadeh, Leila
Chunawala, Taizoon
Fawcett, Randall T.
Leonessa, Alexander
Hamed, Kaveh Akbari
contents This paper formally develops a novel hierarchical planning and control framework for robust payload transportation by quadrupedal robots, integrating a model predictive control (MPC) algorithm with a gradient-descent-based adaptive updating law. At the framework's high level, an indirect adaptive law estimates the unknown parameters of the reduced-order (template) locomotion model under varying payloads. These estimated parameters feed into an MPC algorithm for real-time trajectory planning, incorporating a convex stability criterion within the MPC constraints to ensure the stability of the template model's estimation error. The optimal reduced-order trajectories generated by the high-level adaptive MPC (AMPC) are then passed to a low-level nonlinear whole-body controller (WBC) for tracking. Extensive numerical investigations validate the framework's capabilities, showcasing the robot's proficiency in transporting unmodeled, unknown static payloads up to 109% in experiments on flat terrains and 91% on rough experimental terrains. The robot also successfully manages dynamic payloads with 73% of its mass on rough terrains. Performance comparisons with a normal MPC and an L1 MPC indicate a significant improvement. Furthermore, comprehensive hardware experiments conducted in indoor and outdoor environments confirm the method's efficacy on rough terrains despite uncertainties such as payload variations, push disturbances, and obstacles.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2603_08831
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Predictive Control with Indirect Adaptive Laws for Payload Transportation by Quadrupedal Robots
Amanzadeh, Leila
Chunawala, Taizoon
Fawcett, Randall T.
Leonessa, Alexander
Hamed, Kaveh Akbari
Robotics
Systems and Control
This paper formally develops a novel hierarchical planning and control framework for robust payload transportation by quadrupedal robots, integrating a model predictive control (MPC) algorithm with a gradient-descent-based adaptive updating law. At the framework's high level, an indirect adaptive law estimates the unknown parameters of the reduced-order (template) locomotion model under varying payloads. These estimated parameters feed into an MPC algorithm for real-time trajectory planning, incorporating a convex stability criterion within the MPC constraints to ensure the stability of the template model's estimation error. The optimal reduced-order trajectories generated by the high-level adaptive MPC (AMPC) are then passed to a low-level nonlinear whole-body controller (WBC) for tracking. Extensive numerical investigations validate the framework's capabilities, showcasing the robot's proficiency in transporting unmodeled, unknown static payloads up to 109% in experiments on flat terrains and 91% on rough experimental terrains. The robot also successfully manages dynamic payloads with 73% of its mass on rough terrains. Performance comparisons with a normal MPC and an L1 MPC indicate a significant improvement. Furthermore, comprehensive hardware experiments conducted in indoor and outdoor environments confirm the method's efficacy on rough terrains despite uncertainties such as payload variations, push disturbances, and obstacles.
title Predictive Control with Indirect Adaptive Laws for Payload Transportation by Quadrupedal Robots
topic Robotics
Systems and Control
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.08831