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Robust bipedal walking control through a privileged learning-based, hierarchical imitation learning method

delete2026-03-17
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PRE
AI
K
Ke Feng
T
Thomas Yang
S
Shuzhen Luo *
DOI:10.1007/s00521-025-11808-zdelete
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Abstract

Abstract

En 中文
Reinforcement learning-based controllers enable robots to autonomously learn walking behaviors but often suffer from inefficiencies due to sparse rewards. A common solution involves guiding robots with reference trajectories to imitate predefined motions, accelerating learning but limiting adaptability and independence in unpredictable environments. Additionally, deploying these controllers in real-world applications is complicated by the need to integrate reference motion inputs. This paper introduces a privileged learning-based, hierarchical imitation learning method to address these limitations. Initially, a teacher policy is trained with privileged access to reference trajectories to learn optimal state transitions through reinforcement learning. Subsequently, a student policy is trained to imitate the teacher, relying solely on its internal state without requiring reference trajectories or external sensors. Simulation results and robustness analyses demonstrate that reference-driven policies restrict joint flexibility and underperform on uneven terrains or low-friction surfaces, often becoming unstable under external forces. In contrast, the proposed reference-free method dynamically adapts to uncertain environments, maintaining stable walking even when subjected to random disturbances. This approach reduces reliance on predefined trajectories, sensors, and external perception models, providing a more robust and adaptable solution for autonomous robot locomotion.
Keywords:
Robust walking control
Privileged learning
Hierarchical imitation learning
Reference-free
Uncertain environments

Journal

Neural Computing and Applications cover
Neural Computing and Applications
IF:
4.5
Papers:
830
Citations:
3.2W

Organization

E
electrical engineering and computer science
Scholars:
42
Papers: 23
Citations: 0
M
mechanical engineering
Scholars:
3.7K
Papers: 1.5K
Citations: 0