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Changda Tian

Projects

Research systems

Each project is a complete system — problem, method, hardware, and evidence — not just a paper.

Modular Legged Robots 2026 – present active

Modbot: Reconfigurable Legged Robot Modules

An 8-DoF biped module that walks alone or links into a quadruped — built to measure what modularity really costs in reliability, control, and energy.

Platform:
Modbot (custom biped module) · MuJoCo
Methods:
Context-Conditioned RL · Domain Randomization · Cost-of-Transport Benchmarking
Learning-Based Locomotion Control 2025 – 2026

Ball-Balancing Locomotion on a Quadruped

A Unitree Go2 walks while keeping a free-rolling ball balanced on a plate mounted on its back — learned in simulation, transferred to the real robot.

Platform:
Unitree Go2
Methods:
Reinforcement Learning · Sim-to-Real Transfer · Domain Randomization
Capability-Aware Planning Learning-Based Locomotion Control 2020 – 2023

Capability-Aware Locomotion for Hexapod Robots

A hierarchical learning system that teaches the Qingzhui hexapod what it can traverse — and plans long-range paths it can actually execute.

Platform:
Qingzhui hexapod · CoppeliaSim
Methods:
Reinforcement Learning · Capability Abstraction · Path Planning
Learning from Human Motion Mar 2023 – Sep 2023

HMAMP: Manipulate as Human

Task-oriented manipulation skills learned from human motion with adversarial motion priors, deployed on a real Kinova Gen3 arm.

Platform:
Kinova Gen3 · Simulation
Methods:
Adversarial Motion Priors · Reinforcement Learning · Keypoint Alignment
Learning-Based Locomotion Control 2021 – 2023

Adversarial Motion Balancing for Legged Robots

Stance and swing legs as two adversarially-trained agents — whole-body control for tracking, reinforcement learning for balance.

Platform:
Legged robot simulation
Methods:
Whole-Body Control · Reinforcement Learning · Adversarial Training
Learning-Based Locomotion Control Sep 2019 – Apr 2020

Hierarchical RL Locomotion for a Six-Legged Robot

An early sim-to-real system: a reinforcement-learning planner on top of a trajectory-optimization gait controller for a hexapod.

Platform:
Hexapod robot · Simulation
Methods:
Reinforcement Learning · Trajectory Optimization · Sim-to-Real