Boston Dynamics details the Atlas wheel retrofit: mocap + RL that worked first try
heyshrutimishra · x · 2026-11-10
Boston Dynamics' blog "Atlas On a Roll" explains the engineering behind wheeled Atlas: an experiment bridging classical motor control and whole-body RL.
- Controls engineer Andy Wu says the wheels weren't the point — the goal was pushing actuators to their limits and testing how robust his control tunings are under extreme conditions.
- The 360 jump, despite looking the most dramatic, was among the lowest-risk moves: it came straight from a mocap trajectory library and worked on the first training pass.
- Side dashes, only possible as foot-sliding with feet, emerged as wheel steering and sliding on their own — a pleasant surprise for the team.
- Wu likens drifting Atlas to playing a video game; lessons are already flowing back into the footed Atlas.
Related event: Boston Dynamics Puts Atlas on Wheels for Radical RL Stress Test(3 posts)→
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