California Institute of Technology

Imperial College Innovations Limited

Soon-Jo Chung

Kyunam Kim

Xichen Shi

Patrick Spieler

Elena Sorina Lupu

Ellande Tang

Morteza Gharib

Alexei Harvard

Yisong Yue

Animashree Anandkumar

Stephanie Rider

Guanya Shi

Christopher J Dougherty

Aditya Paranjape

Matthew J Anderson

Salar Rahili

Alireza Ramezani

Marcel Veismann

Michael O'Connell

Vincenzo Capuano

A multi-modal robot that is configured to operate with a bipedal locomotion that may be augmented with aerial locomotion. Many embodiments of a robot may incorporate a robot with a main body portion that houses the various control systems and mechanical controls of the robot. The body of the robot can have a number of different propellers connected to an upper portion of the body and configured to generate lift and/or stability for the body of the robot. Additionally, many embodiments have at least two leg elements connected to a bottom portion of the body by way of a servo mechanism. The legs are configured to provide support for the body of the robot as well as generate a walking locomotion through the movement of the legs.

Synchronized multi-modal robot

An air transport vehicle that capitalizes on the strengths and complexities of a fixed and rotary winged aircraft. The air transport vehicle comprises a body aerodynamically designed to avoid substantial drag. The vehicle has a plurality of rotors configured to generate vertical thrust with a rear rotor configured to generate forward thrust. Additionally, each of the rotors are connected to the fixed wing elements and the fixed wing is positioned about the center of mass of the fuselage. Furthermore, each of the rotors are positioned at a fixed tilt angle such that the stability of the vehicle is maintained in a number of different flight configurations.

Autonomous multi-purpose heavy-lift VTOL

Systems and methods for autonomously herding birds in accordance with embodiments of the invention are illustrated. One embodiment includes an autonomous flock herding system, including a bird location sensor, a drone; and a control system, including a processor, and a memory, the memory containing a flock herding application, where the application directs the processor to obtain bird position data from the at least one bird location sensor, where the bird position data describes the location of birds in a flock of birds, determine if the flock of birds will enter a protected zone, generate a set of waypoints using a flock dynamics model, instruct the unmanned aerial vehicle to navigate to at least one waypoint in the set of waypoints such that the flock of birds will, in response to the presence of the unmanned aerial vehicle at the at least one waypoint, change trajectory away from the protected zone.

Systems and methods for avian flock flight path modification using UAVs

A fixed-wing vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) vehicle configured with a composite adaptive nonlinear tracking controller that utilizes a real-time accurate estimation of the complex aerodynamic forces surrounding the wing(s) and rotors in order to achieve a high performance flight. The method employs online adaptation of force models, and generates accurate estimation for wing and rotor forces in real-time based on information from a three-dimensional airflow sensor. The novel three-dimensional airflow sensor illustrates improved velocity tracking and force prediction during the transition stage from hover to forward flight.

Airflow sensing based adaptive nonlinear flight control of a flying car or fixed-wing VTOL

A system and method for determining the relative position of a mobile device in relation to other devices or objects in an operational space. The systems and methods operate on a tight fusion of raw data from a number of different sensors such that carrier spaced integer ambiguities can be quickly and accurately resolved, especially in GNSS signal degradation scenarios.

Systems and methods for robust and accurate relative navigation

Systems and methods for learning based control in accordance with embodiments of the invention are illustrated. One embodiment includes a method for training an adaptive controller. The method includes steps for receiving a set of training data that includes several training samples, wherein each training sample includes a state and a true uncertain effect value. The method includes steps for computing an uncertain effect value based on the state, computing a set of one or more losses based on the true uncertain effect value and the computed uncertain effect value, and updating the adaptive controller based on the computed set of losses.

Systems and methods for robust learning-based control during forward and landing flight under uncertain conditions

An automated flying transport vehicle that capitalizes on the strengths and complexities of a fixed and rotary winged aircraft. The air transport vehicle comprises a body aerodynamically designed to generate lift and a plurality of rotors that can generate lift as well as forward thrust from which a fixed wing portion of the air transport vehicle will begin to generate additional lift allowing for a sustained flight.

Autonomous flying ambulance

Growing community of inventors

La Cañada, CA, United States of America

Soon-Jo Chung