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Advances in Robot Kinematics and Dynamics: Innovations, Control Strategies, and...
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Advances in Robot Kinematics and Dynamics: Innovations, Control Strategies, and Practical Applications

A special issue of Machines (ISSN 2075-1702). This special issue belongs to the section "Robotics, Mechatronics and Intelligent Machines".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 June 2026 | Viewed by 4336

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Craig R. Carignan

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Aerospace Engineering, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
Interests: robot kinematics and dynamics; compliance control; robotic exoskeletons; rehabilitation robotics; haptic devices; software engineering
Dr. C. Glen Henshaw

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC, USA
Interests: robotic motor learning; nonlinear controls; robotic kinematics and dynamics; robotic satellite servicing concepts and technologies
Dr. Giacomo Marani

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Mechanical, Materials & Aerospace Engineering, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV 26506, USA
Interests: advanced robotics kinematics with task priority assignment; singularity avoidance; workspace optimization; dynamic control of robotic system; compliance control; sensor fusion; and environment interaction with computer vision

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Rapid advancements in mechanisms, sensors, and control over the past two decades have enabled enormous progress along a broad front of robotic applications. Despite these bold strides, progress in several core technologies have lagged behind causing significant limitations. For example, implementing compliance control on industrial robots during tasks involving hard contact is still an enormous challenge. In addition, disturbance compensation for larger devices used in haptic applications remains elusive. Moreover, coordinated, multi-arm manipulation and planning needed for complex robotic assembly tasks is still an area of active research. While industrial exoskeletons to assist factory workers is on the rise, developing comfortable human interfaces with embedded sensors remains a challenge.

This topic provides a platform for researchers to share their insights and innovations in these core areas to support practical applications in robotics. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:

  • Robust compliant control for assembly
  • Human-robot interfaces in exoskeletons
  • Control for dual arm manipulation
  • Transparency for haptic applications
  • Contact dynamic modeling and simulation
  • Singularity and self-motion manifolds
  • Hardware-in-the-loop simulation
  • Parallel mechanisms and other novel devices 

Dr. Craig R. Carignan
Dr. C. Glen Henshaw
Dr. Giacomo Marani
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Machines is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • robust robotic control
  • human-robot collaboration
  • exoskeleton systems
  • dual-arm robotic manipulation
  • haptic feedback in robotics
  • interactive dynamic simulation
  • hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) testing
  • kinematic modeling in robotics

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 5018 KB  
Article
Development of Cable-Laying Robot Based on Reconfigurable Single-Actuator-Wave Units
by Fuga Inagaki, Yuki Sadasue and Masami Iwase
Machines 2026, 14(5), 521; https://doi.org/10.3390/machines14050521 - 8 May 2026
Viewed by 329
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to develop a robot that reduces labor and automates cable-laying work at construction sites. The robot should have the ability to pull lead cables over cable racks and ceiling spaces. Therefore, we propose a reconfigured active-cord-mechanism robot [...] Read more.
The purpose of this study is to develop a robot that reduces labor and automates cable-laying work at construction sites. The robot should have the ability to pull lead cables over cable racks and ceiling spaces. Therefore, we propose a reconfigured active-cord-mechanism robot based on the RSAW mechanism that can move in both environments by maintaining continuous traveling wave propagation across multiple units connected through joints. A prototype robot was first constructed to verify the applicability of the RSAW mechanism to cable-laying environments. However, the discontinuity of the traveling wave at the joint connections prevented the prototype from traversing ceiling spaces. Based on this finding, a new robot was developed with a configuration that ensures continuous wave propagation across the joints through mechanical design and phase synchronization control. As a result, the new robot enhances propulsion speed and cable traction. Additionally, the robot can move over ceiling joint receivers that exist in ceiling spaces. Comparative analysis with previous prototype robots and a snake-like robot highlights this robot’s advantages, including reduced motor count, autonomous operation with mounted power and control units, and superior turning capabilities. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Robot Kinematics and Dynamics: Innovations, Control Strategies, and Practical Applications)
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29 pages, 6490 KB  
Article
A Closed-Form Inverse Kinematic Analytical Method for a Humanoid Seven-DOF Redundant Manipulator
by Guojun Zhao, Ben Ye, Yunlong Tian, Juntong Yun, Du Jiang and Bo Tao
Machines 2026, 14(4), 395; https://doi.org/10.3390/machines14040395 - 4 Apr 2026
Viewed by 427
Abstract
Humanoid manipulators with kinematic redundancy offer enhanced dexterity and adaptability to complex environments. Solving their inverse kinematics (IK) is fundamental to trajectory tracking, motion planning, and real-time control. Conventional Jacobian-based iterative methods are widely used, but they are often sensitive to the initial [...] Read more.
Humanoid manipulators with kinematic redundancy offer enhanced dexterity and adaptability to complex environments. Solving their inverse kinematics (IK) is fundamental to trajectory tracking, motion planning, and real-time control. Conventional Jacobian-based iterative methods are widely used, but they are often sensitive to the initial guess, computationally expensive, and less effective in handling strict constraints. Arm-angle-based analytical parameterization reduces redundancy resolution to a single parameter. However, joint limits may lead to multiple disconnected feasible arm-angle intervals. Many existing methods still depend on a numerical search or intelligent optimization to select the arm angle. This lowers computational efficiency and provides less explicit control over branch and configuration selection. To address these issues, this paper extends the arm-angle analytical IK framework. It introduces global configuration parameters to explicitly control the shoulder-elbow-wrist configuration. It also completes the analytical derivation of the rotational relationships of the first three joints in the reference plane. In addition, a feasibility determination and modeling scheme for the arm-angle domain is established, which covers disconnected feasible intervals. The IK problem is then reformulated as a one-dimensional optimization over the feasible domain. An efficient interval-based search is employed to determine the optimal arm angle. Experimental results demonstrate high accuracy and interference-free trajectory tracking. Comparative tests on randomly sampled target poses are also performed. The results show more concentrated error distributions, shorter average computation time, and higher success rates. These results confirm the advantages of the proposed method in accuracy, robustness, and real-time performance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Robot Kinematics and Dynamics: Innovations, Control Strategies, and Practical Applications)
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20 pages, 17925 KB  
Article
Development and Balancing Control of Control Moment Gyroscope (CMG) Unicycle–Legged Robot
by Seungchul Shin, Minjun Choi, Seongmin Ahn, Seongyong Hur, David Kim and Dongil Choi
Machines 2025, 13(10), 937; https://doi.org/10.3390/machines13100937 - 10 Oct 2025
Viewed by 2178
Abstract
A wheeled–legged robot has the advantage of stable and agile movement on flat ground and an excellent ability to overcome obstacles. However, when faced with a narrow footprint, there is a limit to its ability to move. We developed the control moment gyroscope [...] Read more.
A wheeled–legged robot has the advantage of stable and agile movement on flat ground and an excellent ability to overcome obstacles. However, when faced with a narrow footprint, there is a limit to its ability to move. We developed the control moment gyroscope (CMG) unicycle–legged robot to solve this problem. A scissored pair of CMGs was applied to control the roll balance, and the pitch balance was modeled as a double-inverted pendulum. We performed Linear Quadratic Regulator (LQR) control and model predictive control (MPC) in a system in which the control systems in the roll and pitch directions were separated. We also devised a method for controlling the rotation of the robot in the yaw direction using torque generated by the CMG, and the performance of these controllers was verified in the Gazebo simulator. In addition, forward driving control was performed to verify mobility, which is the main advantage of the wheeled–legged robot; it was confirmed that this control enabled the robot to pass through a narrow space of 0.15 m. Before implementing the verified controllers in the real world, we built a CMG test platform and confirmed that balancing control was maintained within ±1∘. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Robot Kinematics and Dynamics: Innovations, Control Strategies, and Practical Applications)
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