Essays on Mathematical Robotics

The role of compliant fingerpads in grasping and manipulation: Identification and control.- Event-based planning and control for robotic systems: Theory and implementation.- The kinematics of hyper-redundant robots.- Line-integral estimates and motion planning using the continuation method.- Kinematic path planning for robots with holonomic and nonholonomic constraints.- A general approach to path planning for systems without drift.- Discontinuous stabilization of Brockett's canonical driftless system.- On feedback linearization of robot manipulators and Riemannian curvature.- Averaging and energy methods for robust open-loop control of mechanical systems.- Exterior differential systems in control and robotics.