Zhongkai Sun

Shandong University, Ritsumeikan University

Papers

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About

Zhongkai Sun is a leading researcher in legged robotics, specializing in whole-body control, disturbance rejection, and model predictive control (MPC) for dynamic locomotion. His work addresses critical challenges in enabling robots to perceive and react to their environment with robustness and agility. Sun’s most influential contribution is his proprioceptive-based disturbance rejection control framework, which allows legged robots to estimate and resist external forces using only onboard sensors—eliminating the need for external tracking. This work, published in 2023, has already garnered 15 citations for its practical impact on real-world deployment. He further advanced the field with an observer-based state feedback MPC framework (2024, 11 citations) that corrects state estimation errors caused by load fluctuations and modeling inaccuracies, ensuring stable gait execution under uncertainty. Earlier, Sun contributed to mechanical design with a quadruped robot capable of changing its configuration (2021). His research bridges theory and application, offering scalable solutions for dynamic motions in unstructured environments. With a growing citation record and a focus on real-time, sensor-driven control, Sun is shaping the next generation of resilient, autonomous legged systems.