Papers
34
Total Citations
2,945
H-Index
21
About
Mark A. Hoepflinger is a pioneering robotics researcher whose work has fundamentally shaped the field of legged locomotion and quadrupedal robotics. Based at ETH Zurich, his research spans compliant robot design, dynamic motion control, and state estimation for legged systems — areas where his contributions have proven both technically groundbreaking and widely influential. Hoepflinger played a key role in developing the StarlETH and ScarlETH platforms, early compliant quadrupedal robots that demonstrated how series elastic actuation could enable torque-controllable, dynamically agile locomotion. This foundational work directly contributed to the landmark ANYmal robot, introduced in 2016 and now one of the most recognized quadrupedal platforms in the world, accumulating over 860 citations. His state estimation frameworks, which fuse leg kinematics with inertial measurement units to reliably track robot pose across challenging terrain, have become essential references in the field, together drawing nearly 400 citations. His work on haptic terrain classification further extended legged robots' ability to navigate uncertain environments intelligently. With total citations well exceeding 2,300 across his most influential papers, Hoepflinger's research has left an indelible mark on modern robotics, bridging the gap between biological locomotion principles and real-world robotic performance.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
- 1ANYmal - a highly mobile and dynamic quadrupedal robot864 citations · 2016
- 2ANYmal - A Highly Mobile and Dynamic Quadrupedal Robot267 citations · 2016
- 3State Estimation for Legged Robots: Consistent Fusion of Leg Kinematics and IMU246 citations · 2013
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- 6Quadrupedal locomotion using hierarchical operational space control152 citations · 2014
- 7State estimation for legged robots on unstable and slippery terrain138 citations · 2013
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- 9Haptic terrain classification for legged robots106 citations · 2010
- 10ScarlETH: Design and control of a planar running robot100 citations · 2011