Hayato Kato

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About

Hayato Kato is a leading roboticist whose work pushes the boundaries of legged locomotion and dexterous manipulation, with a particular focus on enabling robots to conquer vertical terrain. His most celebrated contribution is the development of **SCALER**, a quadrupedal robot that represents a breakthrough in free-climbing. As detailed in his highly cited 2022 paper (34 citations), SCALER is one of the first high-degree-of-freedom robots capable of climbing overhangs and ceilings under Earth’s gravity, while also trotting efficiently on flat ground—a feat that demands unprecedented mechanical efficiency and control. To solve the complex motion planning this requires, Kato introduced a **distributed optimization framework** (26 citations) that simultaneously coordinates contact-rich grasping and locomotion, allowing multi-limbed robots to securely grip holds while shifting their body weight. This work bridges the gap between traditional legged locomotion and dexterous manipulation, opening new possibilities for inspection, search-and-rescue, and planetary exploration in unstructured, vertical environments. Kato’s research is distinguished by its practical focus on robust, real-world performance, earning him recognition as a pioneer in the emerging field of free-climbing robotics.