Xianyi Cheng 程先仪
Hi, I’m Xianyi (she-an-yee). I recently obtained my PhD from Carnegie Mellon University, where I was advised by Professor Matthew T. Mason.
I’m interested in everything about robotic manipulation. It is usually surprising to many people that, while AIs have achieved superhuman performance in some areas, robots struggle with manipulation tasks that are extremely easy to humans (Moravec’s paradox). My ultimate research goal is to bring human-level dexterity to robotic manipulation. Currently, my work focuses on dexterous manipulation motion generation — the first step toward general manipulation intelligence.
I will join Duke University as an assistant professor in the MEMS department in Spring 2025. I am seeking graduate students passionate about robotic manipulation starting in Fall 2025. More information regarding the PhD openings can be found here.
Publications
Caging in Motion: Characterizing Robustness in Manipulation through Energy Margin and Dynamic Caging Analysis
Yifei Dong, Xianyi Cheng, Florian T. Pokorny
Robotics and Automation Letter (RAL), 2024
paper
Enhancing Dexterity in Robotic Manipulation via Hierarchical Contact Exploration
Xianyi Cheng, Sarvesh Patil, Zeynep Temel, Oliver Kroemer, Matthew T. Mason
Robotics and Automation Letter (RAL), 2023
International Conference on Intelligent Robots (IROS) 2023, Late Breaking Results, Oral
paper/ website
Autogenerated Manipulation Primitives
Eric Huang, Xianyi Cheng, Yuemin Mao, Arnav Gupta, Matthew T Mason
The International Journal of Robotics Research (IJRR), 2023
paper
Learning Preconditions of Hybrid Force-Velocity Controllers for Contact-Rich Manipulation
Jacky Liang, Xianyi Cheng, Oliver Kroemer
The Conference on Robot Learning (CoRL), 2022
paper/ website/ video
Extrinsic Dexterous Manipulation with a Direct-drive Hand: A Case Study
Arnav Gupta, Yuemin Mao, Ankit Bhatia, Xianyi Cheng, Jonathan King, Yifan Hou, Matthew T Mason
International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS), 2022
paper/ video
Contact Mode Guided Motion Planning for Quasidynamic Dexterous Manipulation in 3D
Xianyi Cheng, Eric Huang, Yifan Hou, Matthew T. Mason
International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA), 2022
paper/ video/ code
Contact Mode Guided Sampling-Based Planning for Quasistatic Dexterous Manipulation in 2D
Xianyi Cheng, Eric Huang, Yifan Hou, Matthew T. Mason
International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA), 2021
paper/ video/ contact-mode-enumeration-2d-matlab
Efficient Contact Mode Enumeration in 3D
Eric Huang, Xianyi Cheng, Matthew T. Mason
International Workshop on the Algorithmic Foundations of Robotics (WAFR), 2020
paper
Manipulation with Suction Cups using External Contacts
Xianyi Cheng, Yifan Hou, Matthew T. Mason
International Symposium on Robotics Research (ISRR), 2019
paper/ video
Data-Efficient Process Monitoring and Failure Detectionfor Robust Robotic Screwdriving
Xianyi Cheng, Zhengzhong Jia, Matthew T. Mason
International Conference on Automation Science and Engineering (CASE), 2019
paper
Sensor Selection and Stage & Result Classifications for Automated Miniature Screwdriving
Xianyi Cheng, Zhengzhong Jia, Ankit Bhatia, Reuben M Aronson, Matthew T. Mason
International Conference on Intelligent Robots (IROS), 2018
paper
Teaching
CMU 24-351 Dynamics, Fall 2022, TA and recitation instructor
CMU 24-760 Robot Dynamics and Analysis, Fall 2021, TA and recitation instructor
Industry
Amazon Robotics AI, Applied Scientist Intern, 2022 Summer, Motion primitive development for stowing.
ABB Robotics, Research Intern, 2020 Summer
CV
Download here
Fun
I enjoy singing in the Carnegie Mellon Jazz Choir. Here are some of our performances: Spring 2024, Fall 2023, Spring 2023, Fall 2022.