Indirect robot model learning for tracking control

Learning task-space tracking control on redundant robot manipulators is an important but difficult problem. A main difficulty is the non-uniqueness of the solution: a task-space trajectory has multiple joint-space trajectories associated, therefore averaging over non-convex solution space needs to be done if treated as a regression problem. A second class of difficulties arise for those robots when the physical model is either too complex or even not available. In this situation machine learning methods may be a suitable alternative to classical approaches. We propose a learning framework for tracking control that is applicable for underactuated or non-rigid robots where an analytical physical model of the robot is unavailable. The proposed framework builds on the insight that tracking problems are well defined in the joint task- and joint-space coordinates and consequently predictions can be obtained via local optimization. Physical experiments show that state-of-the art accuracy can be achieved in both online and offline tracking control learning. Furthermore, we show that the presented method is capable of controlling underactuated robot architectures as well. Graphical Abstract