Papers
31
Total Citations
520
H-Index
14
About
Dominic Lakatos is a robotics researcher whose work sits at the intersection of compliant actuation, nonlinear dynamics, and legged locomotion. Based at the German Aerospace Center (DLR), he has made foundational contributions to understanding and harnessing the natural dynamics of elastically actuated robotic systems — robots designed with built-in mechanical compliance that mimics the muscle-tendon structures found in biological organisms. Lakatos is perhaps best known for developing the Elastic Structure Preserving (ESP) control framework (2018, 83 citations), which elegantly addresses the challenge of controlling compliant robots while preserving the energy-storing benefits that make them efficient and robust. His research into nonlinear oscillations and modal dynamics has provided principled methods for generating explosive cyclic motions in multi-degree-of-freedom systems, bridging theoretical mechanics and practical robotic design. His work on eigenmodes and SLIP-inspired locomotion models (2017, 2018) has advanced how template dynamics can be physically embodied in articulated legged robots, demonstrated concretely through DLR's C-Runner platform. With over 300 cumulative citations across his most recognized publications, Lakatos has meaningfully shaped the field of soft and variable-stiffness robotics, offering tools that make agile, energy-efficient, and human-safe robots an increasingly achievable reality.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
- 1Elastic Structure Preserving (ESP) Control for Compliantly Actuated Robots83 citations · 2018
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- 3Nonlinear Oscillations for Cyclic Movements in Human and Robotic Arms35 citations · 2014
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- 5The DLR C-runner: Concept, design and experiments24 citations · 2016
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- 10Modal limit cycle control for variable stiffness actuated robots20 citations · 2013