Mahtab Aboufazeli

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About

Mahtab Aboufazeli is a robotics researcher focused on bio-inspired locomotion, specifically the design and control of compliant-legged quadruped robots. Her work bridges mechanical design and adaptive control to enhance robotic mobility and energy efficiency. She introduced **UPed**, a quadruped robot platform with under-actuated, directionally compliant legs inspired by the bent-knee model of animal anatomy. This platform, detailed in her most-cited paper (2022, 9 citations), provides a unique testbed for studying how passive leg compliance can improve stability and reduce mechanical complexity in legged robots. Building on this foundation, Aboufazeli developed an **online learning algorithm** (2023, 3 citations) that enables a quadruped to autonomously adapt its leg stiffness and stride angle during trotting. By mimicking how animals adjust their gait to varying ground conditions, this algorithm maximizes energy efficiency in real-time—a critical step toward practical, long-duration field robots. Her work is notable for integrating mechanical design with machine learning, offering a scalable approach to adaptive locomotion. With a growing citation record, Aboufazeli is establishing herself as a rising voice in bio-robotics, contributing directly to the development of more agile, efficient, and autonomous legged systems.