Dongwoon Song

About

Dongwoon Song is a robotics researcher whose work spans legged locomotion, robotic manipulation, and autonomous service robotics. He is perhaps best known for developing PAWDQ, an open-source, low-cost, 3D-printed dynamic quadruped robot featuring torque-controlled quasi-direct-drive joints and onboard GPU computing — a platform that has attracted significant community interest with over 30 citations and democratized access to high-performance legged robot research. His contributions to robotic manipulation are equally notable, including a high-speed autonomous assembly system for Soma cube blocks that integrates in-hand manipulation and re-grasping planning (25 citations), and an imitation learning framework enabling anthropomorphic robotic hands to grasp complex-shaped objects. Song has also made substantial contributions to service robotics, designing unified software platforms and modular mobile manipulation systems for long-term autonomous indoor operation. His team's excellence was recognized internationally when they won the RoboCup@Home 2021 Domestic Standard Platform League. More recently, his research has expanded into multi-robot coordination and expressive humanoid companions capable of dynamic dance gestures. Across his body of work, Song consistently bridges hardware innovation with intelligent autonomy, making meaningful advances accessible to the broader robotics community.

Research Focus

Key Achievements

Top Papers

1. 1
   Design and Control of a Open-Source, Low Cost, 3D Printed Dynamic Quadruped Robot

   30 citations · 2021
2. 2
   High-Speed Autonomous Robotic Assembly Using In-Hand Manipulation and Re-Grasping

   25 citations · 2020
3. 3
   Unified Software Platform for Intelligent Home Service Robots

   17 citations · 2020
4. 4
   PAWDQ: A 3D Printed, Open Source, Low Cost Dynamic Quadruped

   10 citations · 2021
5. 5
   Anthropomorphic Grasping of Complex-Shaped Objects Using Imitation Learning

   10 citations · 2022
6. 6
   Design and Control of a Service Robot with Modular Cargo Spaces

   7 citations · 2021
7. 7
   RoboCup@Home 2021 Domestic Standard Platform League Winner

   4 citations · 2022
8. 8
   Development of a Small-Sized Intelligent Home Service Robot

   3 citations · 2021
9. 9
   Development of Dual-Arm Human Companion Robots That Can Dance

   3 citations · 2024
10. 10
    Multi-Robot System for Cooperative Tidying Up with Mobile Manipulators and Transport Agents

    3 citations · 2025

Key Collaborators

Contact & Links