A symmetric unicycle with jumping reaction wheels

Researchers at RWTH Aachen University in the team of Prof. Sebastian Trimpe and the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems (MPI-IS) Stuttgart have recently developed the Wheelbot a symmetric reaction wheel unicycle that can autonomously jump onto its wheels from any initial position. This unique robot, introduced in a paper published in the IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters was fabricated using a combination of off-the-shelf and 3D printed components.

“Our research group works at the intersection between data science and engineering. One particular direction of our research focuses on combining insights from control theory with machine learning,” René Geist, member in Trimpe’s team in Aachen and lead researcher behind the…