Abstract

Aerial robots are present in a variety of domains. In this talk I will discuss some approaches to expanding their capabilities through novel design; specifically viewing the design through the lens of the control problem. I will discuss vehicle designs that achieve greater disturbance rejection through angular momentum, that can morph mid-flight to traverse obstacles, and that can survive and exploit collisions with the environment. Two design approaches to (partially) overcoming the inherent energy storage constraints for aerial vehicles will also be discussed, motivated by challenges in creating useful urban air mobility vehicles ("air taxis"). Time permitting I will also share some work on motion planning for rapid flight through unstructured environments. 

Bio

Mark W. Mueller is an assistant professor of Mechanical Engineering at UC Berkeley, whose research focuses on the design and control of aerial robots. He joined the mechanical engineering department at UC Berkeley in September 2016, after spending some time at Verity Studios working on a drone entertainment system, installed in the biggest theater on New York's broadway. He completed his PhD studies at the ETH Zurich in Switzerland in 2015 under the supervision of Prof. Raffaello D'Andrea, and received an MSc there in 2011. He received a bachelors degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Pretoria in South Africa.