Phanindra Tallapragada

About

Phanindra Tallapragada is a robotics and dynamical systems researcher whose work sits at the intersection of nonholonomic mechanics, bio-inspired locomotion, and fluid-robot interaction. His research has made significant contributions to understanding and controlling underactuated robotic systems, particularly aquatic robots propelled by internal rotors — a design paradigm explored in his widely cited 2015 and 2016 papers (39 and 38 citations, respectively). By drawing on classical mechanical systems like the Chaplygin sleigh, Tallapragada has developed elegant theoretical frameworks for steering and propulsion that apply broadly across terrestrial and aquatic platforms. His 2012 work on proportional heading control (34 citations) demonstrated practical steering methods for fish-like swimmers, while his 2023 paper on physics-informed reinforcement learning reflects his forward-looking integration of machine learning with principled fluid dynamics. Tallapragada has also advanced proprioceptive sensing in underwater robots, enabling them to decode hydrodynamic signatures from vortex wakes without external sensors. His explorations extend further to vibrational locomotion in bristlebots and elastic rotor dynamics, revealing a broad curiosity about how internal actuation drives motion across diverse physical systems. With over 240 cumulative citations, his work continues to shape the theoretical and applied landscape of bio-inspired robotics.

Research Focus

Key Achievements

Top Papers

1. 1
   A swimming robot with an internal rotor as a nonholonomic system

   39 citations · 2015
2. 2
   An Aquatic Robot Propelled by an Internal Rotor

   38 citations · 2016
3. 3
   Proportional heading control for planar navigation: The Chaplygin beanie and fishlike robotic swimming

   34 citations · 2012
4. 4
   Physics-informed reinforcement learning for motion control of a fish-like swimming robot

   29 citations · 2023
5. 5
   Self-propulsion of free solid bodies with internal rotors via localized singular vortex shedding in planar ideal fluids

   24 citations · 2015
6. 6
   Steering a Chaplygin Sleigh Using Periodic Impulses

   20 citations · 2017
7. 7
   Learning hydrodynamic signatures through proprioceptive sensing by bioinspired swimmers

   18 citations · 2020
8. 8
   The Dynamics of a Chaplygin Sleigh with an Elastic Internal Rotor

   15 citations · 2019
9. 9
   A Mobile Mathieu Oscillator Model for Vibrational Locomotion of a Bristlebot

   13 citations · 2021
10. 10
    Reduced-order modeling of propulsive vortex shedding from a free pitching hydrofoil with an internal rotor

    13 citations · 2013

Key Collaborators

Contact & Links