DEFROST

DEFROST - 2025

2025Activity reportProject-Team‌DEFROST

RNSR: 201521175F

Research center Inria Centre at‌ the University of Lille
In partnership with:Ecole‌ Centrale de Lille, CNRS, Université de Lille
Team‌ name: DEFormable Robotics SofTware
In collaboration with:Centre‌ de Recherche en Informatique, Signal et Automatique de‌ Lille

Creation of the Project-Team: 2017 November 01‌

Each year, Inria research teams publish an Activity‌ Report presenting their work and results over the‌ reporting period. These reports follow a common structure,‌ with some optional sections depending on the specific‌ team. They typically begin by outlining the overall‌ objectives and research programme, including the main research‌ themes, goals, and methodological approaches. They also describe‌ the application domains targeted by the team, highlighting‌ the scientific or societal contexts in which their‌ work is situated.

The reports then present the‌ highlights of the year, covering major scientific achievements,‌ software developments, or teaching contributions. When relevant, they‌ include sections on software, platforms, and open data,‌ detailing the tools developed and how they are‌ shared. A substantial part is dedicated to new‌ results, where scientific contributions are described in detail,‌ often with subsections specifying participants and associated keywords.‌

Finally, the Activity Report addresses funding, contracts, partnerships,‌ and collaborations at various levels, from industrial agreements‌ to international cooperations. It also covers dissemination and‌ teaching activities, such as participation in scientific events,‌ outreach, and supervision. The document concludes with a‌ presentation of scientific production, including major publications and‌ those produced during the year.

Keywords

Computer Science‌ and Digital Science

A2.3.3. Real-time systems
A3.1.1. Modeling,‌ representation
A5.5. Computer graphics
A5.6. Virtual reality, augmented‌ reality
A5.10. Robotics
A6.2.1. Numerical analysis of PDE‌ and ODE
A6.2.6. Optimization
A6.4.3. Observability and Controlability‌
A6.4.4. Stability and Stabilization
A9.2. Machine learning
A9.5.‌ Robotics and AI

1 Team members, visitors, external collaborators

Research‌ Scientists

Gang Zheng [Team leader, INRIA‌, Senior Researcher, HDR]
Christian Duriez‌ [INRIA, Senior Researcher, 50% availability‌, HDR]
Quentin Peyron [INRIA,‌ Researcher]

Faculty Members

Yinoussa Adagolodjo [UNIV‌ LILLE, Associate Professor]
Jérémie Dequidt [‌UNIV LILLE, Professor, HDR]
Alexandre‌ Kruszewski [CENTRALE LILLE, Professor, 50%‌ availability, HDR]

PhD Students

Antoine Alessandrini‌ [UNIV LILLE]
Paul Chaillou [INRIA‌, until Mar 2025]
Agneyan Dileep [‌UNIV LILLE]
Yiru Guo [INRIA]‌
Xin Li [CSC Scholarship]
Weizhe Liu‌ [CSC Scholarship]
Luis Fernando Maldonado Saavedra‌ [INRIA]
Thomas Moupfouma [INRIA,‌ from Feb 2025]
Azouaou Ouyoucef [INRIA‌]
Flavie Przybylski [CARANX MEDICAL, CIFRE]
Sizhe Tian [‌UNIV LILLE]
Ziyi‌ Wei [INRIA,‌‌ from Nov 2025]
Zitong Yang [CSC‌ Scholarship]

Technical Staff‌

Zeinab Awada [INRIA‌‌, Engineer, from Jul 2025]
Alexandre‌ Bilger [INRIA,‌ Engineer]
Lucas Burel‌‌ [INRIA, Engineer, from Dec 2025‌]
Maxence Corailler [‌INRIA, Engineer]‌‌
Damien Marchal [CNRS, Engineer]

Interns‌ and Apprentices

Constantin Clauzure‌ [CENTRALE LILLE,‌‌ Intern, from Jul 2025 until Aug 2025‌]
Louis Derambure [‌INRIA]
Cesar Desmarets‌‌ [INRIA, Intern, from May 2025‌ until Jul 2025]‌
Pierre Haettel [UNIV‌‌ LILLE]
Julien Martinez [INRIA, Intern‌, from Jun 2025‌ until Oct 2025]‌‌
Gael Moreau [INRIA, Intern, from‌ Mar 2025 until Jun‌ 2025]
Jooeun Yun‌‌ [UNIV ILLINOIS, from May 2025 until‌ Jul 2025]

Administrative‌ Assistants

Anne Rejl [‌‌INRIA, until May 2025]
Amélie Supervielle‌ [INRIA, from‌ Jun 2025]

2‌‌ Overall objectives

The team DEFROST aims to address‌ the open problem of‌ control, modelling and design‌‌ methods for deformable robots by answering the following‌ challenges:

Providing numerical methods‌ and software support to‌‌ reach the real-time constraint needed by robotic systems:‌ the numerical solutions for‌ the differential equations governing‌‌ the deformation generate tens of thousands degrees of‌ freedom, which is three‌ orders of magnitude of‌‌ what is frequently considered in classical methods of‌ robotic modelling and control.‌
Integrating deformation models in‌‌ the control methods of soft robots: In soft-robotics,‌ sensing, actuation and motion‌ are coupled by the‌‌ deformations. Deformable models must be placed at the‌ heart of the control‌ algorithm design.
Investigating predictable‌‌ interaction models with soft-tissues and parameter estimation by‌ visual feedback from medical‌ imaging: on the contrary‌‌ too many cases in surgical robotics, the contact‌ of the soft robot‌ with the anatomy is‌‌ permitted and it creates additional deformations on the‌ robot.
Developing generic design‌ methodologies for soft robotic‌‌ systems to obtain desired performances in terms of‌ motion and generated forces:‌ the design-space of a‌‌ soft robot is usually composed of a large‌ number of parameters of‌ different nature (geometry, mechanical‌‌ properties, actuator and sensor location) and which have‌ a coupled and non-linear‌ effect in the robot‌‌ behavior.

3 Research program

3.1 Introduction

Our research‌ crosses different disciplines: numerical‌ mechanics, control design, robotics,‌‌ optimisation methods and clinical applications. Our organisation aims‌ at facilitating the team‌ work and cross-fertilisation of‌‌ research results in the group. We have three‌ objectives (1,‌ 2 and 3)‌‌ that correspond to the main scientific challenges. In‌ addition, we have two‌ transverse objectives that are‌‌ also highly challenging: the development of a high-performance‌ software support for the‌ project (Objective 4)‌‌ and the validation tools and protocols for the‌ models and methods (Objective‌ 5).

3.2 Objective‌‌ 1: Accurate model of‌ soft robot deformation computed in finite time

The‌ objective is to find concrete numerical solutions to‌ the challenge of modeling soft robots with strong‌ real-time constraints. To solve continuum mechanics equations, we‌ will start our research with real-time Finite Element‌ Method (FEM) or equivalent methods that were developed‌ for soft-tissue simulation. We will extend the functionalities‌ to account for the needs of a soft-robotic‌ system:

Coupling with other physical phenomenons that govern‌ the activity of sensors and actuators (hydraulic, pneumatic,‌ electro-active polymers, shape-memory alloys, etc.).
Fulfilling the new‌ computational time constraints (harder than surgical simulations for‌ training) and find a better tradeoff between cost‌ and precision of numerical solvers using reduced-order modeling‌ techniques with error control.
Exploring interactive and semi-automatic‌ optimisation methods for design based on obtained solutions‌ for fast computations on soft robot models.

3.3‌ Objective 2: Model based control of soft robot‌ behavior

The focus of this objective is on‌ obtaining a generic methodology for soft robot feedback‌ control. Several steps are needed to design a‌ model based control using FEM approach:

The fundamental‌ question of the kinematic link between actuators, sensors,‌ effectors and contacts using the most reduced mathematical‌ space must be carefully addressed. We need to‌ find efficient algorithms for real-time projection of non-linear‌ FEM models in order to pose the control‌ problem using the only relevant parameters of the‌ motion control.
Intuitive remote control is obtained when‌ the user directly controls the effector motion. To‌ add this functionality, we need to obtain real-time‌ inverse models of the soft robots by optimisation.‌ Several criteria will be combined in this optimisation:‌ effector motion control, structural stiffness of the robot,‌ reduce the intensity of the contact with the‌ environment, etc.
Investigating closed-loop approaches using sensor feedback:‌ as sensors cannot monitor all points of the‌ deformable structure, the information provided will only be‌ partial. We will need additional algorithms based on‌ the FEM model to obtain the best possible‌ treatment of the information. The final objective of‌ these models and algorithms is to have robust‌ and efficient feedback control strategies for soft robots.‌ One of the main challenges here is to‌ ensure / prove stability in closed-loop.

3.4 Objective‌ 3: Modeling interaction with a complex environment

Even‌ if the inherent mechanical compliance of soft robots‌ makes them safer, more robust and particularly adapted‌ to interaction with fragile environments, the contact forces‌ need to be controlled by:

Setting up real-time‌ modeling and the control methods needed to pilot‌ the forces that the robot imposes on its‌ environment and to control the robot deformations imposed‌ by its environment. Note that if an operative‌ task requires to apply forces on the surrounding‌ structures, the robot must be anchored to other‌ structures or structurally rigidified.
Providing mechanics models of‌ the environment that include the uncertainties on the‌ geometry and on the mechanical properties, and are‌ capable of being readjusted in real-time.
Using the visual feedback of the‌ robot behavior to adapt‌ dynamically the models. The‌‌ observation provided in the image coupled with an‌ inverse accurate model of‌ the robot could transform‌‌ the soft robot into sensors: as the robot‌ deforms with the contact‌ of the surroundings, we‌‌ could retrieve some missing parameters of the environment‌ by a smart monitoring‌ of the robot deformations.‌‌

3.5 Objective 4: Soft Robotics Software

Expected research‌ results of this project‌ are numerical methods and‌‌ algorithms that require high-performance computing and suitability with‌ robotic applications. There is‌ no existing software support‌‌ for such development. We propose to develop our‌ own software, in a‌ suite split into three‌‌ applications:

The first one will facilitate the design‌ of deformable robots by‌ an easy passage from‌‌ Computer-Aided Design (CAD) software (for the design of‌ the robot) to the‌ FEM based simulation.
The‌‌ second one is an anticipative clinical simulator. The‌ aim is to co-design‌ the robotic assistance with‌‌ the physicians, thanks to a realistic simulation of‌ the procedure or the‌ robotic assistance. This will‌‌ facilitate the work of reflection on new clinical‌ approaches prior any manufacturing.‌
The third one is‌‌ the control design software. It will provide real-time‌ solutions for soft robot‌ control developed in the‌‌ project.

3.6 Objective 5: Validation and application demonstrations‌

The implementation of experimental‌ validation is a key‌‌ challenge for the project. On one side, we‌ need to validate the‌ model and control algorithms‌‌ using concrete test case examples in order to‌ improve the modeling and‌ to demonstrate the concrete‌‌ feasibility of our methods. On the other side,‌ concrete applications will also‌ feed the reflections on‌‌ the objectives of the scientific program.

We will‌ build our own experimental‌ soft robots for the‌‌ validation of objectives 2 and 3 when there‌ is no existing “turn-key”‌ solution. Designing and making‌‌ our own soft robots, even if only for‌ validation, will help the‌ setting-up of adequate models.‌‌

For the validation of Objective 4, we‌ will develop “anatomical soft‌ robot”: soft robot with‌‌ the shape of organs, equipped with sensors (to‌ measure the contact forces)‌ and actuators (to be‌‌ able to stiffen the walls and recreate natural‌ motion of soft-tissues). We‌ will progressively increase the‌‌ level of realism of this novel validation set-up‌ to come closer to‌ the anatomical properties.

4‌‌ Application domains

4.1 Industry

Robotics in the manufacturing‌ industry is already widespread‌ and is one of‌‌ the strategies put in place to maintain the‌ level of competitiveness of‌ companies based in France‌‌ and to avoid relocation to cheap labor countries.‌ Yet, in France, it‌ is considered that the‌‌ level of robotization is insufficient, compared to Germany‌ for instance. One of‌ the challenges is the‌‌ high investment cost for the acquisition of robotic‌ arms. In recent years,‌ this challenge has led‌‌ to the development of “generic” and “flexible” (but‌ rigid) robotic solutions that‌ can be mass produced.‌‌ But their applicability to‌ specific tasks is still challenging or too costly.‌ With the development of 3D printing, we can‌ imagine the development of a complete opposite strategy:‌ a “task-specific” design of robots. Given a task‌ that needs to be performed by a deformable‌ robot, we could optimize its shape and its‌ structure to create the set of desired motions.‌ A second important aspect is the reduction of‌ the manufacturing cost: it is often predicted that‌ the cost of deformable robots will be low‌ compared to classical rigid robots. The robot could‌ be built on one piece using rapid prototyping‌ or 3D printers and be more adapted for‌ collaborative work with operators. In this area, using‌ soft materials is particularly convenient as they provide‌ a mass/carried load ratio several orders of magnitude‌ higher than traditional robots, highly decreasing the kinetic‌ energy thus increasing the motion speed allowed in‌ the presence of humans. Moreover, the technology allows‌ more efficient and ergonomic wearable robotic devices, opening‌ the option for exo-skeletons to be used by‌ human operators inside the factories and distribution centers.‌ This remains to be put in place, but‌ it can open new perspectives in robotic applications.‌ A last remarkable property of soft robots is‌ their adaptability to fragile or tortuous environments. For‌ some particular industry fields (chemistry, food industry, etc.)‌ this could also be an advantage compared to‌ existing rigid solutions. For instance, the German company‌ festo, key player in the industrial robotics‌ field, is experimenting with deformable trunk robots that‌ exhibit great compliance and adaptability, and we are‌ working on their accurate control.

4.2 Personal and‌ service robotics

Personal and service robotics are considered‌ an important source of economic expansion in the‌ coming years. The potential applications are numerous and‌ in particular include the challenge of finding robotic‌ solutions for active and healthy aging at home.‌ We plan to develop functional orthosis for which‌ it is better not to have a rigid‌ exoskeleton that is particularly uncomfortable. These orthosis will‌ be ideally personalized for each patient and built‌ using rapid prototyping. On this topic, the place‌ of our team will be to provide algorithms‌ for controlling the robots. We will find some‌ partners to build these robots that would fall‌ in the category of “wearable robots”. With this‌ thematic we also connect with a strong pole‌ of excellence of the region on intelligent textiles‌ (see Up-Tex) and with the strategic plan‌ of INRIA (Improving Rehabilitation and Autonomy).

4.3 Entertainment‌ industry and arts

Robots have a long history‌ with entertainment and arts where animatronics have been‌ used for decades for cinematographic shootings, theater, amusement‌ parks (Disney's audio-animatronic) and performing arts.‌ This year, we obtained an award for an‌ Art Installation at the Exhibit Panorama 22. The‌ installation “L'Érosarbénus”, which was produced at Le Fresnoy‌ for the exhibition Panorama 22, is a‌ collaboration between visual artist Yosra Mojtahedi and DEFROST. This installation, whose aesthetics‌ are inspired by rocky,‌ plant and human forms,‌‌ is brought to life with the help of‌ Soft Robotics devices. It‌ was awarded the prize‌‌ “Révélation Art Numérique — Art Vidéo 2020” by‌ the ADAGP. See the‌ ARTE video.

4.4‌‌ Medical Applications

Soft robots have many medical applications‌ as their natural compliance‌ make them safer than‌‌ traditional robots when interacting with humans. Such robots‌ can be used for‌ minimally invasive surgery, to‌‌ access and act on remote parts of the‌ body through minimal incisions‌ in the patient. Applications‌‌ include laparascopic and brain surgery, treatment of several‌ cancers including prostate cancer,‌ and cardiology, for example‌‌ percutaneous coronary interventions. As an example, we received‌ an industry grant (CIFRE)‌ with Robocath to work‌‌ on autonomous catheter navigation. See Section 9.‌

Another application is cochlear‌ implant surgery in the‌‌ project ANR ROBOCOP.

5 Social and environmental responsibility‌

The team fully endorses‌ the needs for an‌‌ increased integration of social and environmental responsibility and‌ seeks to align with‌ the 17 Sustainable Development‌‌ Goals laid out by the United Nations.‌ The team also acknowledges‌ the Net Zero target‌‌ of the 2050 Paris agreement and is working‌ either on its practices‌ as well as on‌‌ its scientific objectives to align with the 2030's‌ intermediate GhG emission roadmap.‌

In terms of social‌‌ responsibility, the team wants to point out that‌ environmental concerns were mentioned‌ by postdocs, graduated PhD‌‌ students and visiting master students regarding theirs willingness‌ to make or not‌ a scientific career. This‌‌ increased expression is something we should pay attention‌ to and for which‌ building a shared vision‌‌ and clear actions and message is important not‌ only for the team‌ but also for our‌‌ scientific community and more generally Inria.

This is‌ why, in addition to‌ the best practices recommended‌‌ by Inria, the team supports the actions put‌ in place either by‌ other teams individuals or‌‌ collectives.

5.1 Footprints of research activities

The CRIStAL‌ laboratory and the University‌ of Lille account for‌‌ their GHG emissions. The CRIStAL accounting is done‌ by Damien Marchal ,‌ member of DEFROST. This‌‌ gives us an overview of our current footprint,‌ which is probably quite‌ common for a research‌‌ and technology oriented team. Travel, commuting, office occupancy,‌ hardware equipment and operation‌ are the most significant‌‌ elements of our footprint. The results were presented‌ and discussed during one‌ of our team meeting.‌‌ In the following are presented our activities for‌ the elements where clear‌ direction and actions have‌‌ been taken.

5.1.1 Traveling

In terms of traveling,‌ we are following the‌ Inria general travel policy.‌‌ We are also adopting a frontrunner approach and‌ encourage team members to‌ adopt the more ambitious‌‌ flyless guide produced by the Inria MakeSenS initiative.‌

Currently we:

favor visio-conferencing‌ whenever possible and beneficial,‌‌
choose alternative modes of transportation to flying. Our‌ analysis shows that destination‌ reachable by a train‌‌ travel bellow 8h allows‌ to reach maximum efficiency in GES emission reduction‌ while still being manageable if the alternative is‌ comfortable high-speed train.
strategically select the workshop and‌ conferences location we attend to reach the best‌ scientific impact, scientific community building while reducing the‌ transportation footprint.

5.1.2 Daily commuting

With other laboratories‌ from the University of Lille, the team is‌ actively promoting for more sustainable commuting practices and‌ is participating to local initiatives or national ones‌ like being part of the Inria AGOS's team‌ at the national challenge MaiAVélo. In 2025, Inria‌ centers participated to this event as well as‌ a continuously increased amount of research institutions in‌ France (universities, research institutes, cnrs).

Finally we also‌ make sure that the team members are informed‌ of the transportation allowances at Inria and favoring‌ sustainability among which the "Forfait Mobilité Durable" and‌ the public transportation allowance.

5.1.3 Sharing objectives externally‌

The team, not only encourages its members to‌ adhere to the highest practice standard but also‌ to adopt a frontrunner position. This includes sharing‌ our objectives and ambitions with peers and research‌ community (eg: having one slide related to footprint‌ in the team presentations slides). Damien Marchal ,‌ from our team, is in charge of a‌ master course at University of Lille for computer‌ science students. This master is titled "Enjeux Environmentaux‌ et Société" (society and sustainability). After a general‌ introduction to climate, biodiversity, energy and resources issues,‌ in-depth presentations, strongly relying on Inria members' expertise,‌ have been done including:

Damien Marchal (DEFROST): Climate‌ modeling and simulation.
Damien Marchal (DEFROST): Green House‌ Gas emissions accounting.
Adrien Luxey-Bitri (SPIRALS): ACV analysis‌ for strategic decision taking.
Romain Rouvoy (SPIRALS): measuring‌ the environmental impact of software and IT.
Denis‌ Debarbieux (Norsys, alumni of LINKS): Feedback on the‌ transition from a standard to a mission-oriented company,‌ and the development of an ambitious RSE project‌ by ESN Norsys.

Moreover, Quentin Peyron is in‌ charge of the sustainability comission of the Inria‌ center of Lille (Comission Locale de Développement durable).‌ Through this comission, his missions are to monitor‌ the total green gas emissions of the research‌ center, propose actions and improvements to reduce these‌ emissions, and communicate, sensibilize and train researchers on‌ the environmental problems and possible solutions.

5.2 Impact‌ of research results

The team is actively working‌ on ecology-oriented research problems related to soft robotics‌ and wishes to develop this activity in the‌ near future. Quentin Peyron research plan focuses on‌ the development of industrial soft robots with a‌ low ecological footprint. The main concept is to‌ leverage the inherent compliance of untransformed plant-based elements,‌ such as wicker branches and bamboo stems, to‌ fabricate soft manipulators with minimal energy consumption and‌ CO2 emission. The research plan also includes the‌ development of new physical architectures, models and control‌ laws to minimize soft robot's energy consumption once‌ online. Together with Christian Duriez and Sébastien Briot‌ from LS2N, Nantes, they co-supervise a PhD student, Luis Fernando Maldonado Saavedra‌ , on the use‌ of wicker branches for‌‌ parallel continuum robots.

Three projects were initiated. First,‌ the team applied and‌ received a BQR grant‌‌ from Centrale Lille (9500€) for the design and‌ fabrication of a first‌ prototype of eco-designed soft‌‌ manipulator. Second, it is involved in the PEPR‌ O2R AS1 with a‌ work-package on the eco-design‌‌ of soft manipulators using wicker and bamboo. This‌ project funds the PhD‌ of Luis Fernando Maldonado‌‌ Saavedra . Third, 12 students from Centrale Lille‌ have been asked to‌ work during four semesters‌‌ on the design, the characterization and the life‌ cycle analysis of a‌ soft robot fabricated with‌‌ raw potato material. The goal of this project‌ is to fabricate a‌ lab prototype of bio-sourced‌‌ robot degrading fast in time, to develop design‌ and control methologies which‌ are robust to these‌‌ degradations.

6 Highlights of the year

6.1 Awards‌

PhD student Lingxiao Xun's‌ thesis was awarded Best‌‌ Robotic Thesis in France (GdR Robotique, 2024, 1st‌ Prize).
PhD student Azouaou‌ Ouyoucef 's paper was‌‌ a Best Paper Finalist at RoboSoft 2025.
Christian‌ Duriez received the Best‌ Extended Abstract Award at‌‌ RoboSoft 2025.

6.2 PEPR O2R days organization

The‌ DEFROST team organized, from‌ March 17 to 21‌‌ 2025, the first edition of the PEPR O2R‌ Days in Lille as‌ a one-week event, marking‌‌ a key milestone for the "organic robotics" community.‌ The first part of‌ the week, dedicated to‌‌ the “experimental days,” focused on interdisciplinarity between engineering‌ sciences and social sciences‌ and humanities, through hands-on‌‌ work around real robotics use-case “fields” within the‌ Lille metropolitan area. The‌ second part of the‌‌ event included presentations of ongoing PEPR projects, as‌ well as artistic works.‌ It also featured a‌‌ “Tech Tribunal” organized in collaboration with the Maison‌ des Humanités Potentielles, fostering‌ reflection on robotics, arts‌‌ and technology with humor. Overall, the event attracted‌ more than one hundred‌ participants.

6.3 Organization and‌‌ Hosting of the EECI IGSC Course

The EECI‌ IGSC (International Graduate School‌ on Control) course “Modeling‌‌ and Control of Continuum Soft Robots” was held‌ in Lille from March‌ 10–14, 2025, with Defrost‌‌ participating and serving as the local host. The‌ course was taught by‌ Cosimo Della Santina and‌‌ Daniel Feliu Talegon and focused on continuum soft‌ robots inspired by biological‌ systems, emphasizing compliant and‌‌ continuously deformable structures. Key challenges addressed included the‌ modeling and control of‌ highly nonlinear, underactuated systems‌‌ with many degrees of freedom. The course reviewed‌ established methods, presented recent‌ advances, and discussed open‌‌ research issues in soft robot control.

6.4 Organization‌ of a workshop at‌ IFAC Mechatronics and Robotics‌‌

In collaboration with the ENIT (Bejamin Mauzé, Tarbes)‌ and FEMTO-ST (Kanty Rabenorosoa,‌ Besançon), the DEFROST team‌‌ organized a workshop at the international joint conference‌ Mechatronics and Robotics of‌ IFAC (workshop website‌‌). This workshop, entitled "Control and Design Coupling‌ in Deformable Mechatronic and‌ Robotic Systems for Physical‌‌ Interactions with Humans", aimed‌ at providing to the IFAC community an introduction‌ to soft robotics and mechatronics, and to discuss‌ the potential of deformable systems in designing safe‌ devices to interact physically with. This workshop allowed‌ to create or strengthen relations with international researchers‌ of the field (UK, Italy, Canada), as well‌ as national ones. It has been attended by‌ numerous participants during the conference.

7 Latest software‌ developments, platforms, open data

7.1 Latest software developments‌

7.1.1 SoftRobots

Name:
SoftRobots plugin for Sofa
Keywords:‌
Numerical simulations, Problem inverse, Soft robotics
Functional Description:‌
Modelling, simulation and control of soft robots. This‌ plugin allows the modeling of deformable robots in‌ the Sofa platform. It allows the modeling of‌ different actuators, such as cable, pneumatic pressure, hydraulics‌ and other simpler types of actuation. It also‌ contains useful tools for animation design or communication‌ with the robot. Coupled with the SoftRobots.Inverse plugin,‌ it also allows the control of these robots.‌ More information can be found on the dedicated‌ website.
URL:
https://project.inria.fr/softrobot/
Publication:
hal-01649355
Contact:
Christian Duriez‌
Participants:
Christian Duriez, Olivier Goury, Jérémie Dequidt, Eulalie‌ Coevoet, Felix Vanneste, Damien Marchal
Partner:
CRIStAL

7.1.2‌ Model Order Reduction Plugin for SOFA

Name:
Model‌ Order Reduction Plugin for SOFA
Keywords:
Model Order‌ Reduction, Sofa, Finite element modelling
Scientific Description:
This‌ plugin allows speed-up of SOFA simulations by providing‌ tools to create a reduced version of the‌ SOFA simulation that runs at much higher rates‌ but remains accurate. Starting with a snapshot of‌ the object deformations on a high-dimensional Finite Element‌ mesh, Proper Orthogonal Decomposition (POD) is used to‌ compute a reduced basis of small dimension representing‌ correctly all the possible deformations of the object.‌ The original system describing the object motion is‌ then greatly reduced. To keep numerical efficiency, a‌ hyper-reduction method is used to speed-up the construction‌ of the reduced system.
Functional Description:
This plugin‌ allows to dramatically reduce computational time in mechanical‌ simulation in the SOFA framework. A reduced simulation,‌ of much smaller dimension but still accurate is‌ created in an automatic way by the plugin.‌ Building the reduced model may take time, but‌ this operation is made once only. The user‌ can then benefit from a reduced and interactive‌ version of his/her simulation without significant loss of‌ accuracy.
Release Contributions:
This is the first version‌ of the plugin.
URL:
https://project.inria.fr/modelorderreduction/
Publication:
hal-01834483
Contact:‌
Olivier Goury
Participants:
Olivier Goury, Felix Vanneste, Christian‌ Duriez, Eulalie Coevoet, Damien Marchal

7.1.3 SoftRobots.Inverse

Name:‌
SoftRobots.Inverse
Keywords:
Sofa, SoftRobots
Scientific Description:
This plugin‌ implements a method to compute the inverse model‌ of a robot in its environment. The input‌ of the method is the desired position of‌ the effector. The output is the force or‌ the motion that needs to be applied to‌ the actuators in order to minimize the distance‌ with the effector position. This is found by‌ minimizing the constraint equation using Quadratic Programming (QP),‌ i.e. minimizing the violation of the defined constraints.
Functional Description:
This plugin‌ builds on the plugin‌ SoftRobots. Inside the plugin,‌‌ there are some constraint components that are used‌ to describe the robot‌ (effectors, actuators, sensors). An‌‌ optimisation algorithm is provided to find the efforts‌ to put on actuators‌ in order to place‌‌ the robot in the closest possible configuration to‌ the one described by‌ “effectors”, or to a‌‌ state described by “sensors”. This method used to‌ control the soft robots‌ in the task space‌‌ is patented.
URL:
https://project.inria.fr/softrobot
Publications:
hal-01425349, hal-01649355‌
Contact:
Christian Duriez
Participants:‌
Christian Duriez, Eulalie Coevoet,‌‌ Damien Marchal
Partner:
CRIStAL

7.1.4 Cosserat plugin

Keywords:‌
Physical simulation, Finite element‌ modelling, Soft robotics, Needle‌‌ insertion, Frictional contact
Functional Description:

Context and Positioning‌ The Cosserat plugin is‌ an open-source module designed‌‌ to integrate with the SOFA (Simulation Open Framework‌ Architecture) physics simulation framework.‌ Its primary role is‌‌ to enable the simulation of deformable linear structures‌ — objects whose geometry‌ is essentially one-dimensional (length‌‌ >> width/thickness) — based on the Cosserat beam‌ mechanical theory.

Core Functional‌ Principle Cosserat theory is‌‌ built on a distinctive view of matter: each‌ point of an object‌ is treated not as‌‌ a simple particle (with only 3 translational degrees‌ of freedom), but as‌ a full rigid body‌‌ with 6 degrees of freedom (3 translations +‌ 3 rotations). This approach‌ captures far richer mechanical‌‌ behavior than classical models, including bending, torsion, extension,‌ and shearing in a‌ coupled and nonlinear fashion.‌‌ In practice, the plugin represents a flexible structure‌ as a series of‌ chained rigid bodies whose‌‌ relative positions are governed by a strain state.‌ This creates a framework‌ closely resembling articulated solids,‌‌ but grounded in continuous, physically realistic mechanics.

What‌ the Plugin Can Simulate‌ The plugin is particularly‌‌ suited to structures with a wire-like or tubular‌ shape, such as: Biological‌ and medical objects: surgical‌‌ needles, suture threads, cochlear implants (modeling their insertion‌ into the cochlea), catheters,‌ flexible endoscopes. Soft robots:‌‌ cable-driven continuum robots, concentric tube robots, pneumatic soft‌ robots with constant cross-sections,‌ soft grippers, continuum manipulators.‌‌ Generic wire-like objects: wires, rods, cables, ropes, and‌ any object with a‌ "beam-like" geometry.

Main Features‌‌ 1. Piecewise Constant Strain Model (PCS) This is‌ the plugin's foundational feature.‌ The structure is divided‌‌ into sections, each assumed to have a uniform‌ (constant) deformation. This discrete‌ model, known as the‌‌ Discrete Cosserat Model (DCM), is computationally efficient while‌ remaining physically realistic for‌ a wide range of‌‌ applications. It captures torsion, bending, and shearing deformations.‌ 2. Piecewise Non-Constant Strain‌ Model An extension of‌‌ the PCS model, this feature allows more complex‌ and continuous deformation profiles‌ within each section, offering‌‌ greater accuracy for structures with significant curvature variations‌ along their length. 3.‌ Direct Simulation (Forward Kinematics)‌‌ The plugin computes the physical behavior of a‌ structure in response to‌ applied actuations or forces:‌‌ pulling cables, pneumatic pressure, contact with the environment.‌ Users can observe the‌ resulting deformation in real‌‌ time or near-real time.‌ 4. Inverse Control (Inverse Kinematics) The plugin also‌ supports an inverse control mode: the user defines‌ a target position or configuration for the structure,‌ and the plugin automatically computes the actuations needed‌ to reach it. This is essential for motion‌ planning in soft robotics. 5. Multi-Section and Heterogeneous‌ Structures Structures composed of multiple sections with different‌ mechanical properties (stiffness, diameter, material) can be defined,‌ making it possible to model robots or instruments‌ with variable geometry along their length. 6. Cable-Based‌ Actuation The plugin natively supports the modeling of‌ actuation cables routed through the structure, which is‌ fundamental for the most common types of continuum‌ robots.

Usage Modes The plugin offers three interaction‌ modes for building simulation scenes: Via Python: scripting‌ complex scenes with fine-grained parameterization, ideal for automation‌ and research workflows. Via XML: declarative description of‌ SOFA scenes, accessible without advanced programming knowledge. Via‌ C++: development of new components to extend the‌ plugin's capabilities.

What the Plugin Does Not Cover‌ The Cosserat plugin is specialized for 1D (linear)‌ structures. It is not designed to simulate volumetric‌ solids, surfaces (shells, membranes), or fluids. For such‌ cases, other SOFA plugins are more appropriate.
URL:‌
https://github.com/SofaDefrost/Cosserat
Publication:
hal-03192168
Contact:
Yinoussa Adagolodjo

7.1.5 SofaGym‌

Keywords:
Plugin SOFA, Reinforcement learning, SoftRobots
Functional Description:‌
Software toolkit to easily create an OpenAI Gym‌ environment out of any SOFA scene. The toolkit‌ provides an API based on the standard OpenAI‌ Gym API, allowing to train classical Reinforcement Learning‌ or Planning algorithms.The toolkit also comprises example scenes‌ based on the SoftRobots plugin for SOFA to‌ illustrate how to include SOFA simulations and train‌ learning algorithms on them.
URL:
https://github.com/SofaDefrost/SofaGym
Publication:
hal-03778189‌
Contact:
Christian Duriez
Participants:
Christian Duriez, Etienne Menager,‌ Pierre Schegg, Elie Khairallah, Damien Marchal
Partner:
CRIStAL‌

7.1.6 SofaGLFW

Name:
Simple GUI for SOFA, based‌ on GLFW
Keywords:
GUI (Graphical User Interface), Plugin‌ SOFA, Sofa
Functional Description:

Integration of GLFW is‌ automatic (automatic fetching and integration with CMake), and‌ linked statically.

This GUI is launchable with the‌ standard runSofa, or can be used with a‌ (provided) stand-alone executable runSofaGLFW (which needs much less‌ dependencies than runSofa)

Lastly, this GUI was designed‌ to support multiple windows in the same time‌ and multiple simulations.

By default, SofaGLFW does not‌ show any user interface. Only the keyboard allows‌ limited interactions with the simulation. That is why‌ a user interface based on Dear ImGui is‌ provided.

Integration of Dear ImGui is automatic (automatic‌ fetching and integration with CMake), and linked statically.‌
URL:
https://www.sofa-framework.org/applications/plugins/modern-gui-using-glfw/
Contact:
Alexandre Bilger

7.1.7 SofaViscoElastic

Name:‌
SofaViscoElastic
Keyword:
SoftRobots
Functional Description:

Implements the fundamental‌ linear viscoelastic constitutive laws applied to tetrahedral meshes‌ for SOFA. Viscoelasticity is a property of elastomeric‌ materials that influences their mechanical behavior under dynamic‌ conditions. In fact, viscoelastic constitutive equations are dependent‌ on the stress/strain rate. At low stress/strain rates,‌ a viscoelastic material behaves like a viscous liquid-like‌ material, while at high stress/strain rates, the same material behaves like a‌ Hookean solid. In fact,‌ the simplest viscoelastic models‌‌ are the Maxwell and Kelvin-Voigt models.

These two‌ models represent the basic‌ units that constitute viscoelastic‌‌ materials. They are composed of an elastic part,‌ represented by the spring‌ symbol, and a viscous‌‌ part, represented by the dashpot. The Maxwell and‌ Kelvin-Voigt models describe the‌ behavior of certain materials,‌‌ such as silly putty and gels. Furthermore, they‌ are unstable theoretical models‌ under creep (Maxwell) or‌‌ stress relaxation (Kelvin-Voigt) conditions. Elastomers and rubbers are‌ polymeric materials, but they‌ are also used in‌‌ several industrial applications. Many research fields are involved‌ in developing and using‌ new elastomeric materials and‌‌ rubbers, such as soft robotics and surgical applications.‌ For this reason, this‌ plugin is recommended for‌‌ users who want a realistic mechanical simulation of‌ these materials affected by‌ viscoelasticity. To describe their‌‌ viscoelastic properties, different viscoelastic models have to be‌ used, like the Standard‌ Linear Solid (SLS) Maxwell/Kelvin-Voigt‌‌ representation.

They add another spring in parallel (Maxwell‌ representation) or in series‌ (Kelvin-Voigt representation) to make‌‌ the model stable under creep and stress relaxation.‌ They are excellent for‌ describing the rheology of‌‌ viscoelastic polymers. The SofaViscoElastic plugin presents nine different‌ viscoelastic models. For more‌ theoretical information, users can‌‌ refer to the paper "Modeling and analyzing viscoelastic‌ effects in soft actuators‌ and robots" by Ferrentino‌‌ et al., submitted to the Soft Robotic Journal‌ (SORO).
URL:
https://github.com/SofaDefrost/SofaViscoElastic
Contact:‌
Christian Duriez
Partner:
CRIStAL‌‌

7.1.8 CondensedFEMModel

Name:
Soft Robots Condensed FEM Model‌ for Control and Design‌ Optimization
Keyword:
SoftRobots
Functional‌‌ Description:
This plugin for the open-source simulation framework‌ SOFA contains components for‌ learning a condensed FEM‌‌ model from a soft robot SOFA scene. We‌ also provide an implementation‌ for leveraging the learned‌‌ model for control, embedded control, calibration and design‌ optimization applications.
URL:
https://github.com/SofaDefrost/CondensedFEMModel‌
Publication:
hal-04167863
Contact:
Christian‌‌ Duriez

7.1.9 SOFA

Name:
Simulation Open Framework Architecture‌
Keywords:
Real time, Multi-physics‌ simulation, Medical applications
Functional‌‌ Description:
SOFA is an Open Source framework primarily‌ targeted at real-time simulation,‌ with an emphasis on‌‌ medical simulation. It is mostly intended for the‌ research community to help‌ develop new algorithms, but‌‌ can also be used as an efficient prototyping‌ tool. Based on an‌ advanced software architecture, it‌‌ allows the creation of complex and evolving simulations‌ by combining new algorithms‌ with algorithms already included‌‌ in SOFA, the modification of most parameters of‌ the simulation (deformable behavior,‌ surface representation, solver, constraints,‌‌ collision algorithm etc.) by simply editing an XML‌ file, the building of‌ complex models from simpler‌‌ ones using a scene-graph description, the efficient simulation‌ of the dynamics of‌ interacting objects using abstract‌‌ equation solvers, the reuse and easy comparison of‌ a variety of available‌ methods.
News of the‌‌ Year:
The new version v20.06 has been released‌ including new elements on‌ SoftRobots + ModelOrderReduction integration,‌‌ in addition to an improved architecture and lots‌ of cleans and bugfixes.‌
URL:
http://www.sofa-framework.org
Publication:
hal-00681539‌‌
Contact:
Hugo Talbot
Participants:‌
Christian Duriez, François Faure, Hervé Delingette, Stephane Cotin,‌ Hugo Talbot, Damien Marchal, Maud Marchal
Partners:
IGG,‌ CRIStAL

7.1.10 Sofa.PointCloud

Name:
Sofa.PointCloud
Keywords:
Robotics, Simulation,‌ 3D reconstruction
Functional Description:
Sofa.PointCloud is a plugin‌ for the SOFA Framework, dedicated to interactive physical‌ simulation and visualization. It enables the loading, manipulation,‌ and rendering of 3D point clouds (e.g., from‌ 3D reconstruction or scanning) using a Gaussian Splatting‌ rendering approach — providing smooth and high-quality visualization‌ of dense, unstructured point data.
URL:
https://github.com/CRIStAL-PADR/Sofa.PointCloud
Contact:‌
Damien Marchal
Participant:
Damien Marchal

7.2 New platforms‌

7.2.1 Foam-Bot

Participants: Maxence Corailler, Christian Duriez‌.

Following a collaboration with the MFX team‌ (Inria Nancy) and extending the previous work of‌ the Defrost Team (PhD of Felix Vanneste) on‌ the use of 3D-printed foam, we designed this‌ original robotic trunk platform made of foam. It‌ consists of a two segments tendon actuated serial‌ manipulator. Each segment is composed of a given‌ number of 3D-printed foam subsegments and rigid interfaces.‌ Boyden cables linked to pulleys and Dynamixel servo-motors‌ are used for actuation, and are guided through‌ both types of subsegments along the robot. Additionnally,‌ 3D-printed strain sensors, obtained with conductive TPU, can‌ be easily added, removed or replaced in each‌ foam subsegment. The physical platform is linked to‌ an interactive mechanical simulation in Sofa, used to‌ provide a model for control and for estimating‌ the robot shape from the strain sensors. The‌ goals of this platform are 3 fold:

To‌ explore the possibility of designing larger scale soft‌ manipulator compared to medical applications, especially for industrial‌ applications and artistic demonstrations.
To investigate the advantages‌ of 3D-printed foams for soft robotics
To design‌ a modular platform allowing to change the number‌ of actuated segments, the numer of strain sensor‌ embedded, and the properties of the foam-like elastic‌ body, playing on its stiffness, geometry and anisotropy.‌

Figure 1: Prototype of‌ FoamBot together with its interactive mechanical simulation.

7.2.2‌ Active prostate phantom

Participants: Sizhe Tian, Yinoussa‌ Adagolodjo, Jérémie Dequidt.

Following up on‌ a previous work on prostate phantom by Stefan‌ Escaida Navarro, we designed a new prostate phantom‌ to actively simulate Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH). This‌ platform replicates realistic, volumetric growth for medical training‌ and robotic system validation. The prostate phantom is‌ made of silicone gel, casted using lost-wax method.‌ It has 3 independent chambers, actuated by a‌ Murata Microblower driven by driver DRV8825, with close-loop‌ feedback from pressure sensors MPXV7025G. The system is‌ controlled by a simulation in SOFA, which can‌ either simulate the growth of the prostate phantom‌ under pressure, or calculate the actuation pressure to‌ reach a targeted growth in term of volume.‌ A scanner is built using a webcam on‌ a motorized platform that rotates around the phantom‌ to capture images, These are processed through Meshroom‌ to reconstruct 3D meshes for volumetric comparison against‌ SOFA simulation. The goal of this platform includes:

To explore soft robotic‌ in simulating dynamic human‌ organ pathological changes
To‌‌ provide a validation platform for robotic-assisted medical systems.‌
To verify simulation results‌ and improve FEM simulations.‌‌

Figure 2:‌ Prototype of active prostate‌ phantom.

7.2.3 Virtual Twins‌‌

Participants: Christian Duriez, Damien Marchal, Hugo‌ Talbot.

Within the‌ nationwide TIRREX Equipex+, members‌‌ of the team had made several virtual twins‌ demonstrating the capabilities of‌ our simulation framework. The‌‌ twins are all using SOFA and SoftRobots plugin‌ but are exposed as‌ ROS node so they‌‌ can be controller in a similar way as‌ the real robots they‌ are modeling. In 2025‌‌ the Sofa.PointCloud plugin was developped by Damien Marchal‌ . This plugin allows‌ to add highly realistic‌‌ 3D models of real robots thanks to a‌ Gaussian Splating Reconstruction technique.‌ We are in the‌‌ process of upgrading our virtuals twins so they‌ profit of it (see‌ Figure 3).

Figure‌‌ 3: Modelling of one of the robot‌ of the CRIStAL lab‌ with SOFA and the‌‌ Sofa.PointCloud plugin.

Endoscope twin

The system is a‌ modular and motorized endoscopy‌ platform consisting of two‌‌ parts: the patient system and the remote manipulation‌ console. The first part,‌ the patient system, consists‌‌ of a motorized flexible endoscope, and two motorized‌ flexible surgical instruments, mounted‌ on a mobile platform.‌‌ The second part, the manipulator console, is a‌ dedicated mobile console used‌ to remotely manipulate the‌‌ patient system. The main intended application is endoscopic‌ dissection of the submucosa‌ (ESD) in colorectal localization.‌‌ The digital twin models the whole system using‌ SOFA and the plugins‌ BeamAdapter, SoftRobots, and SofaPython3.‌‌ The twin is open-source and available at Endoscopy‌ repository.

Figure 4: Endoscopic twin in a picking‌ task.

Caroca twin

The‌ system is a large‌‌ cable-driven parallel robot (CDPR). It is a six‌ degrees of freedom suspended‌ CDPR with eight cables.‌‌ The current version of the digital twin is‌ a work in progress,‌ it only models a‌‌ part of the system ; the cables and‌ the coupling with the‌ manipulated object. It uses‌‌ SOFA and the plugins BeamAdapter, Cosserat and SofaPython3.‌ The twin is open-source‌ and available at Caroca‌‌ repository.

Figure 5: A large cable-driven‌ parallel robot (CDPR) featuring‌ six degrees of freedom‌‌ suspended CDPR with eight cables.

Micro Parallel twin‌

The system is a‌ small parallel continuum robot‌‌ ; it is composed of four legs connected‌ to a gripper. The‌ digital twin models the‌‌ whole system using SOFA and the plugins BeamAdapter,‌ SoftRobots, and SofaPython3. The‌ twin is open-source and‌‌ available at MicroParallel repository.

Figure 6‌: Virtual twin of‌‌ a microgripper.

8 New‌ results

8.1 Duality of the existing geometric variable‌ strain models for the dynamic modelling of continuum‌ robots

Participants: Azouaou Ouyoucef, Quentin Peyron,‌ Vincent Lebastard, Frederico Renda, Gang Zheng‌, Frédéric Boyer.

The Cosserat rod theory‌ has become a gold standard for modeling the‌ statics and dynamics of serial and parallel continuum‌ robots. Recently, a weak form of these Cosserat‌ rod models called the geometric variable strain model‌ has been derived where the robot deformations are‌ projected on finite-dimensional basis functions. This model has‌ very interesting features for continuum robotics, such as‌ a Lagrangian form close to classical rigid robots‌ and the ability to tune its performances in‌ terms of computation time and accuracy. Two approaches‌ have been proposed to obtain and compute it.‌ The first is based on the Newton-Euler recursive‌ algorithm and the second, on the projection of‌ the strong form equations using Jacobian matrices. Although‌ these approaches yield identical model forms, their disparate‌ implementations and numerical schemes render each uniquely suited‌ to specific applications. Notably, underlying these disparities lies‌ a profound duality between these models, prompting our‌ quest for a comprehensive overview of this duality‌ along with an analysis of their algorithmic differences‌ 15. Finally, we discuss perspectives for these‌ two approaches, in particular their hybridization, based on‌ the current knowledge of rigid robotics.(See Fig. 7‌)

Figure 7: Synthesis‌ of the steps in both approaches side by‌ side. The blue and red areas are relative‌ to the NE recursive approach and Jacobian based‌ approach, respectively. The yellow part corresponds to the‌ full Cosserat rod model.

8.2 Durability-aware trajectory planning‌ and quasi-static control of a continuum parallel robot‌ for industrial applications

Participants: Azouaou Ouyoucef, Quentin‌ Peyron, Gang Zheng, Frédéric Boyer.‌

This paper addresses durability-aware trajectory planning and tracking‌ strategies for the motion of the platform in‌ an extensible planar tendon-actuated continuum parallel robot (CPR)‌ 16. The proposed planning approach combines the‌ A* algorithm with the Geometric Variable Strain (GVS)‌ static Cosserat rod model, incorporating a durability-related cost‌ alongside Euclidean distance to enhance the durability of‌ the robot's legs in pick-and-place applications. Simulation results‌ demonstrate a 23% reduction in the durability-related cost‌ compared to the shortest-path trajectory. Additionally, the same‌ GVS static model is used to extend the‌ classical Jacobian-based controller to the CPR case, with‌ multiple legs geometrically constrained, for precise and robust‌ quasi-static tracking of the planned trajectories. Experimental validation‌ is conducted under nominal conditions and in the‌ presence of external disturbances, including end-effector loading and‌ temporary manual perturbations, demonstrating the effectiveness and robustness‌ of the proposed strategies, achieving a mean tracking‌ error below 0.84% and a maximum error below‌ 4.2%, with respect to the length of the‌ CPR leg.(See Fig. 8)

Figure 8: Results‌‌ of two studied cases. (a) Trajectory planning tests‌ (b) Time-varying trajectory tracking‌ tests (c) Relative error‌‌ between the measured and the reference coordinates of‌ the CPR platform with‌ respect to the robot's‌‌ length.

8.3 Active Prostate Phantom with Multiple Chambers‌

Participants: Sizhe Tian,‌ Yinoussa Adagolodjo, Jeremie‌‌ Dequidt.

Prostate cancer is a major global‌ health concern, requiring advancements‌ in robotic surgery and‌‌ diagnostics to improve patient outcomes. A phantom is‌ a specially designed object‌ that simulates human tissues‌‌ or organs. It can be used for calibrating‌ and testing a medical‌ process, as well as‌‌ for training and research purposes. Existing prostate phantoms‌ fail to simulate dynamic‌ scenarios. This paper presents‌‌ a pneumatically actuated prostate phantom with multiple independently‌ controlled chambers, allowing for‌ precise volumetric adjustments to‌‌ replicate asymmetric and symmetric benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH)‌ 24. The phantom‌ is designed based on‌‌ shape analysis of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) datasets,‌ modeled with finite element‌ method (FEM), and validated‌‌ through 3D reconstruction. The simulation results showed strong‌ agreement with physical measurements,‌ achieving average errors of‌‌ 3.47% in forward modeling and 1.41% in inverse‌ modeling. These results demonstrate‌ the phantom's potential as‌‌ a platform for validating robotic-assisted systems and for‌ further development toward realistic‌ simulation-based medical training. (See‌‌ Fig. 9)

Figure‌‌ 9: Left: Simulation of the phantom, physical‌ phantom and 3d reconstruction‌ of the phantom (from‌‌ top to bottom), Right: experiment setup for the‌ reconstruction

8.4 Data-Driven Polytopic‌ Approximation of Non-Linear Systems‌‌ Using Reduced Number of Vertices

Participants: Antoine Alessandrini‌, Alexandre Kruszewski,‌ Laurentiu Hetel, Christian‌‌ Duriez.

We present a generic algorithm for‌ estimating quasi-Linear Parameter Varying‌ (qLPV) models using radial‌‌ basis function (RBF) from state and output measurements‌ of discrete autonomous systems.‌ The proposed method guarantees‌‌ a bounded approximation error across the entire training‌ dataset and incorporates global‌ stability constraints on the‌‌ null equilibrium point when known. Extensions to continuous-time‌ systems and systems with‌ external inputs further enhance‌‌ its versatility. The approach is illustrated on an‌ FEM model of a‌ soft pendulum, demonstrating its‌‌ capability in capturing complex system dynamics. (See Fig.‌ 10) The algorithm‌ reduces the number of‌‌ vertices required in the polytopic representation, maintaining accuracy‌ while minimizing computational complexity.‌ 19.

Figure 10:‌ Step Reference (solid red)‌‌ and End-effector position (dashed blue) for closed loop‌ simulation using statefeedback control.‌ Open Loop response (dashed‌‌ green) for final motor values on step. Both‌ are based on SOFA‌ simulator.

8.5 In silicone‌‌ and in silico: toward evaluation of pacemaker lead‌ implantation based on soft‌ robotics and computer simulation‌‌

Participants: Thomas Moupfouma,‌ Quentin Peyron, Yinoussa Adagolodjo, Sylvain Caubet‌, Jean-François Ollivier, Christian Duriez.

This‌ work presents a novel soft robotic phantom designed‌ for evaluating medical tools in pacemaker lead implantation‌ procedures, while minimizing reliance on animal testing 21‌. The platform integrates a beating ventricle in‌ silicone with an instrumented apex, a subclavian vein‌ phantom, and a vision-based system, all immersed in‌ a water tank to simulate the blood flow.This‌ hardware is coupled with a real-time biomechanical simulation,‌ offering a realistic environment for testing medical devices‌ and training in silico. This study focuses‌ on the first experimental assessment of the main‌ elements composing the phantom, as well as the‌ potential complementarity offered by coupling soft hardware with‌ physical simulation to evaluate pacemaker lead designs.(See Fig.‌ 11)

Figure 11: Soft robotic phantom‌ for tool evaluation in pacemaker lead implantation. 1:‌ Right ventricle, 2: Subclavian vein, 3: Ventricle Apex,‌ 4: Water tank, 5: Vision-based measurement system.

8.6‌ Modeling, Embedded Control and Design of Soft Robots‌ using a Learned Condensed FEM Model

Participants: Tanguy‌ Navez, Etienne Menager, Paul Chaillou,‌ Olivier Goury, Alexandre Kruszewski, Christian Duriez‌.

The finite element method (FEM) is a‌ powerful modeling tool for predicting soft robots' behavior,‌ but its computation time can limit practical applications.‌ In this article, a learning-based approach based on‌ condensation of the FEM model is detailed 14‌. The proposed method handles several kinds of‌ actuators and contacts with the environment. We demonstrate‌ that this compact model can be learned as‌ a unified model across several designs and remains‌ very efficient in terms of modeling since we‌ can deduce the direct and inverse kinematics of‌ the robot. Building upon the intuition introduced in‌ (Ménager et al., 2023), the learned model is‌ presented as a general framework for modeling, controlling,‌ and designing soft manipulators. First, the method's adaptability‌ and versatility are illustrated through optimization-based control problems‌ involving positioning and manipulation tasks with mechanical contact-based‌ coupling. Second, the low-memory consumption and the high‌ prediction speed of the learned condensed model are‌ leveraged for real-time embedding control without relying on‌ costly online FEM simulation. Finally, the ability of‌ the learned condensed FEM model to capture soft‌ robot design variations and its differentiability are leveraged‌ in calibration and design optimization applications.

Figure 12: Illustration of the‌ condensed FEM model for a soft finger with‌ contacts.

8.7 Homogeneous Unit Sliding Mode Control for‌ Uncertain Mechanical Systems

Participants: Yiru Guo, Andrey‌ Polyakov, Gang Zheng.

Designing high-performance controllers‌ for mechanical systems is often complicated by structured‌ multiplicative uncertainties and additive disturbances. Traditional robust control‌ strategies, which typically model these uncertainties as a‌ nominal value plus a bounded perturbation, often result in conservative designs that‌ sacrifice performance for stability.‌ To address this, a‌‌ novel concept of high-order convex approximation is introduced‌ to address the uncertainties‌ present in a class‌‌ of nonlinear systems 13. Based on this‌ refined uncertainty representation, a‌ Homogeneous Unit Sliding Mode‌‌ Control (HUSMC) is developed, which can achieve globally‌ uniformly finite-time stability. The‌ tuning of the controller‌‌ parameters is systematically formulated within the framework of‌ Linear Matrix Inequalities (LMIs),‌ allowing for precise adjustments‌‌ to balance robustness and tracking accuracy. Numerical validations‌ on an uncertain 2-DOF‌ rigid manipulator demonstrate that‌‌ this method significantly outperforms standard linear controllers, particularly‌ in scenarios involving low-‌ and high-frequency disturbances. (See‌‌ Fig. 13)

Figure 13:‌ Schematic overview of the‌‌ HUSMC framework.

8.8 Design Exploration of Planar Continuum‌ Parallel Robots with Constrained‌ Platform Orientation

Participants: Congjian‌‌ Gao, Quentin Peyron, Sébastien Briot.‌

Continuum parallel robots are‌ a new class of‌‌ parallel robots in which the end-eﬀector is moved‌ by controlling the deformations‌ of their ﬂexible legs.‌‌ In general, all degrees of freedom of the‌ robot platform are coupled,‌ leading to the necessity‌‌ to have the same number of motors as‌ the number of degrees‌ of freedom oﬀered by‌‌ the space of displacements. Recent works showed that‌ it is possible to‌ design continuum parallel robots‌‌ such that the orientation of their platform is‌ constrained to be constant.‌ Planar designs able to‌‌ obtain this interesting performance are made with the‌ use of ﬂexible parallelograms.‌ However, a single design‌‌ has been studied which presents legs’ overlap. There‌ is a lack of‌ a deeper study of‌‌ the other possible designs able to obtain the‌ same types of mobilities‌ while being more practical‌‌ to build. In the present paper, we thus‌ explore how diﬀerent platform‌ shapes inﬂuence the angular‌‌ deviations of the platform as well as the‌ robot’s workspace 23.‌

Figure 14: Design‌‌ or parallel continuum robot composed of two flexible‌ parallelograms linked to a‌ straight, vertical platform. The‌‌ variation of the platform orientation is quasi-null throughout‌ the workspace.

8.9 Towards‌ Real-Time Simulation of Soft‌‌ Robots with Contacts using a Method of Hybrid‌ Hyper-Reduction.

Participants: Olivier Goury‌, Samuel M. Youssef‌‌, Simon Le Berre, Christian Duriez.‌

Soft robotics has emerged‌ as an important part‌‌ of robotics in recent years. Soft robots have‌ an inherent view of‌ contacts that is dramatically‌‌ different from traditional rigid robots. Indeed, for rigid‌ robots, contacts are either‌ forbidden to avoid damage‌‌ to the robot, the environment and humans, or‌ precisely controlled for locomotion‌ or interaction with an‌‌ object. For soft robots, contacts may happen without‌ damage, and when interacting‌ with an object, local‌‌ deformations allows for smoother interactions and potentially better‌ performance. These prospects make‌ soft robots attractive for‌‌ tasks such as grasping.‌ Fast finite element simulation is very useful for‌ control and design. However, simulating collision adds a‌ major numerical cost as it requires first a‌ collision detection algorithm to detect collisions, and most‌ importantly, it requires solving a constrained problem to‌ avoid inter-penetrations and compute contact forces. When the‌ number of contact points is large, this computation‌ slows down the simulation dramatically. In this work‌ pubished in 20, we apply a hybrid‌ hyper-reduction method to alleviate the FEM cost, the‌ collision detection as well as the contact response‌ computation. The deformations are computed in a low-dimensional‌ subspace computed from offline experiments. The mechanical matrices‌ are reduced through a method of hyper-reduction and‌ the collision model is reduced following a hybrid‌ reduction strategy. We show good agreement between original‌ and reduced simulation while speeding up dramatically the‌ computation. We first apply the method in simulation‌ on a soft bouncing ball to explain the‌ method. We then show an example with a‌ soft gripper. The method is generic and can‌ be used for control, design or learning algorithms.‌

Figure 15.a — Figure 15: Snapshot generation for a single‌ finger with collision. The Finger is actuated with‌ a cable and is in contact with a‌ cube that is moved along the finger last‌ phalanx and Soft gripper in action grabbing a‌ sphere. The gripper model is reduced following the‌ method.

Figure 15.b — Figure 15: Snapshot generation for a single‌ finger with collision. The Finger is actuated with‌ a cable and is in contact with a‌ cube that is moved along the finger last‌ phalanx and Soft gripper in action grabbing a‌ sphere. The gripper model is reduced following the‌ method.

9 Bilateral contracts and grants with industry‌

9.1 Bilateral grants with industry

9.1.1 Caranx Medical‌

Caranx Medical is a startup company focusing on‌ surgical robotics. Their aim is to revolutionize surgery‌ with novel ground-breaking surgical robots. We have started‌ a PhD thesis in Feb 2022 through the‌ CIFRE program. The phD is focused on the‌ use of vine robots in surgical robotics. We‌ are working on a new model for everting‌ robots.

Participants: Christian Duriez, Jeremie Dequidt,‌ Flavie Przybylski.

9.1.2 Compliance Robotics

Compliance Robotics‌ is a spin-off of the DEFROST team whose‌ goal is to explore the uses of soft‌ robots in education, industry and agriculture, particularly with‌ regard to the issue of fragility: how to‌ move, manipulate, maneuver, or come into contact with‌ fragile objects or environments. To explore these applications,‌ we felt that there was an opportunity for‌ a great adventure with the creation of a‌ company that would allow us to explore both‌ the R&D and economic aspects, and have a‌ direct socio-economic impact. The company is located very‌ closed to the DEFROST team to facilitate collaborations.‌ In order to enable the transfer of intellectual‌ property from Inria to the company and to‌ manage the secondment (for 50% of their time)‌ of Alexandre Kruszewski and Christian Duriez , a‌ contract was signed between Inria and Compliance Robotics.‌ This contract contains a number of provisions designed‌ to guarantee Inria's interest in the success of the company. Finally, the‌ company contributed to the‌ funding of Antoine Alessandrini's‌‌ thesis and to the organization of the summer‌ school on Deformation in‌ Robotics.

Participants: Christian Duriez‌‌, Alexandre Kruszewski, Antoine Allessandrini.

10‌ Partnerships and cooperations

10.1‌ International initiatives

10.1.1 Associate‌‌ Teams in the framework of an Inria International‌ Lab or in the‌ framework of an Inria‌‌ International Program

REINFORCE (2025–2027):
is an Inria Associate‌ Team focused on precision-enhanced‌ digital twins for soft‌‌ robotic surgery. The project strengthens collaboration with the‌ RAS (Robotic Assisted Surgery)‌ team at KU Leuven,‌‌ led by Prof. Emmanuel Vander Poorten. Its goal‌ is to develop reliable‌ digital twins that accurately‌‌ model soft robotic devices and their interactions with‌ biological tissues in minimally‌ invasive surgery. By integrating‌‌ advanced modeling, multi-modal sensing, and machine learning, the‌ project addresses the challenges‌ of complex tissue behavior‌‌ and device dynamics. These high-fidelity digital twins will‌ improve control, device design,‌ pre-operative planning, and surgeon‌‌ training in next-generation surgical robotics.

10.2 European initiatives‌

10.2.1 Horizon Europe

IRE‌

Participants: Jeremie Dequidt,‌‌ Christian Duriez, Yinoussa Adagolodjo, Thomas Moupfouma‌, Maxence Corailler.‌

IRE project on cordis.europa.eu‌‌

Title:
Intelligent Robotic Endoscopes for Improved Healthcare Services‌
Duration:
From March 1,‌ 2024 to February 29,‌‌ 2028
Partners:
- INSTITUT NATIONAL DE RECHERCHE EN INFORMATIQUE‌ ET AUTOMATIQUE (INRIA), France‌
- REGION HOVEDSTADEN (REGIONH), Denmark‌‌
- INSIMO, France
- AMBU A/S, Denmark
- UNIVERSITEIT TWENTE (UNIVERSITEIT‌ TWENTE), Netherlands
- KOBENHAVNS UNIVERSITET‌ (UCPH), Denmark
- UNIVERSITE DE‌‌ LILLE (UNIVERSITE DE LILLE), France
- UNIVERSIDAD REY JUAN‌ CARLOS (URJC), Spain
- EBERHARD‌ KARLS UNIVERSITAET TUEBINGEN (UT),‌‌ Germany
- Ambu Innovation GmbH (Ambu Innovation GmbH), Germany‌
Inria contact:
Christian Duriez‌
Coordinator:
Summary:

In Intelligent‌‌ Robotic Endoscopes (IRE) for Improved Healthcare Services we‌ envision creating intelligent robotics‌ solutions, extending current endoscope‌‌ technology with robotics control that is based on‌ learning from currently collected‌ human operator data, coupled‌‌ with novel bio-mechanical modeling techniques, and sensory feedback‌ as well as soft‌ robotics phantom for training.‌‌

The challenge with colonoscopy is that the success‌ rate of detecting cancer‌ depends on the skills‌‌ of the clinician that operates the endoscope. From‌ a health and societal‌ perspective, the number of‌‌ colonoscopies is bound to increase as they are‌ the only way to‌ screen patients for early‌‌ cancer detection. Many European countries have national screening‌ programs. This is a‌ very big market in‌‌ need of improved technology.

IRE enables a new‌ generation of intelligent robots‌ that through data, simulation‌‌ and learning can interact with the interior of‌ a living human while‌ communicating with a human‌‌ operator. The huge variation of human anatomy and‌ the dynamic effect of‌ human physiology make it‌‌ a complicated navigational task to use endoscopes. Entanglement,‌ haemorrhage, and perforation risks‌ create a critical and‌‌ difficult environment to navigate autonomously in where even‌ trained human operators meet‌ challenges. We exploit one‌‌ of the largest datasets on real-life colonoscopies with‌ more than 2,000 operations‌ to learn safe navigation,‌‌ combined with simulated training‌ on a population of biomechanical models of the‌ abdominal region.

IRE boosts the design and configuration‌ of the robotic endoscope using digital twins and‌ simulation, and careful inclusion of clinicians will speed‌ up the process of integration. IRE will raise‌ the level of autonomy by building upon simulation,‌ imaging, and learning to yield an increased interpretation‌ and understanding of the complex real- world environments,‌ capable of anticipating the effect of human motions,‌ adapting and replanning to avoid entanglement.

10.3 National‌ initiatives

ANR PRC RPC-JaM:

Participants: Quentin Peyron,‌ Gang Zheng, Yinoussa Adagolodjo, Christian Duriez‌.

Parallel Continuum Robot with Modular Legs, 2025-2029‌. This project gathers Inria Lille, LS2N, FEMTO-ST,‌ and Ensad. It aims to advance singularity analysis,‌ modeling, control, and design of parallel continuum robots‌ viewed as assemblies of serial, individually actuated continuum‌ legs. These modular legs can be reconfigured by‌ users according to task needs and operator preferences,‌ enabling more human-adapted and human-adaptable manipulation. The project‌ also explores novel applications through artistic robotics installations‌ to engage a broader audience.

ANR PRC ADAGIO:‌

Participants: Yinoussa Adagolodjo, Jeremie Dequidt.

Tendon-actuated‌ continuum robots for endoscopic drainage of the gallbladder‌ In acute cholecystitis, 2025-2029. This project involves‌ the University of Strasbourg, the University of Grenoble,‌ and DEFROST. It aims to develop advanced numerical‌ modeling and real-time control strategies to improve the‌ precision and stability of robotic endoscopic procedures. By‌ integrating numerical modeling, robotic control, image-based perception, and‌ differentiable simulation, the project pursues accurate motion compensation‌ for continuum robots interacting with soft, deformable environments.‌

ANR DOMINANTS:

Participants: Gang Zheng.

Dexterity-oriented methodology‌ in optimized design and control of soft aerial‌ manipulators. This is a 4-year project, supported by‌ the ANR (French National Agency for Research) in‌ the framework of PRCI, with administrative start date‌ being 1 October 2024. The DOMINANTS project aims‌ to develop a novel methodology for optimized design‌ and fast control of SAM for the purpose‌ of increasing dexterity so that it can reach‌ a larger workspace with the ability to quickly‌ grasp various types of static and dynamic objects‌ in a complex and unstructured environment.

ANR ACCESS:‌

Participants: Yinoussa Adagolodjo, Christian Duriez, Alexandre‌ Kruszewski, Gang Zheng.

Actively controlled electrode‌ for soft surgery. This is a 42-month project,‌ supported by the ANR (French National Agency for‌ Research) in the framework of PRCE, starting from‌ 1 November 2024. ACCESS is the continuation of‌ the ROBOCOP project, and it aims to create‌ an innovative biocompatible thin film electrode array (TFEA)‌ integrating soft actuators to be coupled with the‌ implanted stimulator, as well as the innovative controlled/automatic‌ robotic insertion of this TFEA into the cochlea,‌ where the surrounding anatomical structure will be considered.‌ ACCESS project will help the surgeon, guarantee more‌ effective implantation by reducing insertion trauma and achieving‌ better hearing performance after surgery.

ANR Equipex+ TIRREX:‌

Participants: Christian Duriez, Damien Marchal, Gang Zheng.

TIRREX project‌ aims to develop new‌ emblematic platforms in robotics‌‌ with a national coordination for their access and‌ development. The project brings‌ together all the major‌‌ players in French academic research in robotics (CNRS,‌ INRIA, CEA, INRAE) with‌ 19 partners. It is‌‌ structured around 6 thematic axes: Humanoid Robotics, XXL‌ Robotics, Micro-Nano Robotics, Autonomous‌ Terrestrial Robotics, Aerial Robotics‌‌ and Medical Robotics, and transversal axes: Prototyping &‌ Design, Manipulation, and open‌ Infrastructure. Christian Duriez is‌‌ co-responsible of the axis open Infrastructure, in particular‌ for the development of‌ digital twins.

PEPR-O2R:

Participants:‌‌ Christian Duriez, Quentin Peyron, Jeremie Dequidt‌.

O2R is a‌ national initiative that involves‌‌ french major laboratories in robotics and will last‌ 8 years starting from‌ Jan. 2024. The focus‌‌ of this ambitious program is to investigate three‌ scientific challenges: Understanding determinants‌ for social adaptation of‌‌ robots and their links with robotic decisions and‌ design choices; Creating integrated‌ robot hardware and software‌‌ architectures, to enable embodied intelligence and robustness faced‌ with the complexity of‌ their exercise and use‌‌ environments; Endowing robots with capabilities for fluid interaction‌ with humans, to favor‌ social integration. Within this‌‌ program, DEFROST is very active through two specific‌ actions: the first one‌ being material, architecture and‌‌ embodied intelligence and the second one about simulation‌ tools for multiphysics, multiscale‌ robots.

PEPR Accélération Robotique:‌‌

Participants: Christian Duriez, Gang Zheng.

This‌ national initiative brings together‌ major French robotics laboratories.‌‌ Its objective is to support academic research at‌ low TRL levels (1–3)‌ to establish the foundations‌‌ of high-performance, frugal, and responsible robotics capable of‌ accompanying societal and industrial‌ transformations. The program integrates‌‌ energy and environmental challenges while seeking to improve‌ the productivity and sustainability‌ of human activities. Three‌‌ scientific themes are emphasized: perception and adaptation; mobility‌ and control; and frugality.‌ DEFROST contributes through the‌‌ targeted project “Dexterous Robotic Manipulation for Industry.”

10.4‌ Regional initiatives

CPER CornelIA:‌ Concentric tube robotics platform,‌‌ 2023-2026. The goal is to enable minimally‌ invasive interventions in anatomically‌ complex and hard-to-reach regions,‌‌ particularly behind the spinal column. The project fosters‌ close collaboration between the‌ DEFROST team and the‌‌ surgical department of CHR Lille. Together, they aim‌ to translate robotic innovations‌ into clinically relevant tools‌‌ for improved patient care.
CPER RITMEA: Design and‌ development of soft upper‌ limb exoskeletons, 2024-2025.‌‌ The project focuses on creating passive and active‌ soft exoskeletons to support‌ rehabilitation and assist patients‌‌ in performing daily activities with reduced effort and‌ improved comfort. It combines‌ advances in soft robotics,‌‌ ergonomic design, and human–machine interaction to achieve safe‌ and adaptable assistance.

11‌ Dissemination

11.1 Promoting scientific‌‌ activities

11.1.1 Scientific events: organisation

General chair, scientific‌ chair

Quentin Peyron :‌ Organization of the workshop‌‌ entitled "Control and Design Coupling in Deformable Mechatronic‌ and Robotic Systems for‌ Physical Interactions with Humans"‌‌ at the IFAC Robotics and Mechatronics joint conferences,‌ together with Benjamin Mauzé‌ (ENIT, Tarbes) and Kanty‌‌ Rabenorosoa (FEMTO-ST, Besançon). Workshop‌ website
Christian Duriez was the General Chair of‌ the PEPR O2R days organized in Lille (about‌ 100 participants)
SofaWeek 2025 in Lille: The team‌ contributed to organize the SofaWeek 2025, a one‌ week event comprising a one-day international symposium, training‌ sessions and technical discussions around the simulation software‌ SOFA. International researchers and companies from the community‌ joined the Symposium in order to present their‌ on-going research or products based on SOFA, to‌ share ideas, experiences and build new collaborations. Five‌ different sessions were organized with a total of‌ 16 oral presentations. 150+ participants (including 100 continuously‌ throughout the day and 70 participants on site)‌ from 32 different countries took part to the‌ hybrid on-site/online Symposium event. The week ended with‌ the SOFA technical committee, which governs and takes‌ all technical decisions for the roadmap towards upcoming‌ releases.

Member of the conference program committees

Gang‌ Zheng is associate editor for IEEE-Robosoft 2025

Reviewer‌

Quentin Peyron : Reviewer for IEEE-IROS, IEEE-ICRA, IEEE-Robosoft‌
Yinoussa Adagolodjo : ROBOSOFT, ISMAR, Mathematical and Computer‌ Modeling of Dynamical Systems, IEEE ICRA, IEEE‌ IROS, Computer Graphics.

11.1.2 Journal

Member of the‌ editorial boards

Christian Duriez is associate editor of‌ Robotics and Automation Letters (RAL).
Gang Zheng is‌ associate editor of IET Cyber-Systems and Robotics.

Reviewer‌ - reviewing activities

Quentin Peyron : Reviewer for‌ IEEE-Robotics and Automation Letter, IEEE-Transaction on Robotics, Transactions‌ on Mechatronics, International Journal of Robotics Research, Journal‌ of Mechanism and Robotics
Yinoussa Adagolodjo : IEEE‌ T-RO, ROBOSOFT, IEEE RA-L, Transactions on Haptics,‌ JMRR.
Christian Duriez : Reviewer for the conferences‌ ROBOSOFT 2026 and IEEE IROS, and for the‌ journal IEEE RA-L.

11.1.3 Invited talks

Quentin Peyron‌ : "How to design a cable-actuated serial continuum‌ robot", Journées Nationales de la Recherche en Robotique,‌ 2025.
Yinoussa Adagolodjo : Summer School on Control‌ of Surgical Robots (COSUR 2025), taking place from‌ September 8-10, 2025 in Lisbon, Portugal, as a‌ pre-event to the CRAS conference.
Yinoussa Adagolodjo :‌ journée "Matériaux pour la robotique souple et fabrication"‌ online
Jérémie Dequidt : "Soft robotics for Neurosurgery‌ procedures", NeurotechEU Symposium 2025
Christian Duriez : French‌ National Academia of Technology (Académie des Technologies) for‌ a workshop on robotics, National University of Singapore‌ for a talk on industrial application of soft‌ robots, GDR IG-RV for a talk on connection‌ between virtual reality and soft robotics, the ANRT‌ (National Agency for Research and Technology) for the‌ industrial and medical applications of soft robots, invitation‌ from Central and Science Politique Lille for a‌ presentation on societal impacts of robotics, invited talk‌ at a ROBOSOFT 2025 workshop on motion planning.‌

11.1.4 Leadership within the scientific community

Christian Duriez‌ : Co-director of PEPR O2R (CNRS/Inria/CEA) (2022–2025) (National‌ program with a total budget of 35M€).
Jérémie‌ Dequidt : Responsable of AS4 of PEPR O2R‌ (CNRS/Inria/CEA) (2022–2025).
Jérémie Dequidt : Responsable of the‌ Scientific Theme 'Souplesse et Deformation' of GdR Robotique‌ (2024–2025).

11.1.5 Scientific expertise

Gang Zheng is member of the evaluation committee‌ of CSS-MISTI of INRAE.‌
Gang Zheng is member‌‌ of the evaluation committee CE33 (Robotics and Interaction)‌ for the french research‌ agency (ANR).
Alexandre Kruszewski‌‌ was reviewer for a project of the ANR-AAPG-2025‌

11.1.6 Research administration

Quentin‌ Peyron : President of‌‌ the Comission Locale de Développement Durable of Centre‌ Inria de l'Université de‌ Lille.
Damien Marchal :‌‌ Mission of environmental comptability for the research units‌ of the CNRS, under‌ the supervision of the‌‌ Directeur Général Délégué aux Ressources.
Damien Marchal :‌ Elected member of the‌ Commission Recherche de l'Université‌‌ de Lille.
Damien Marchal : Head of the‌ Engineering at the CRIStAL‌ laboratory.
Yinoussa Adagolodjo :‌‌ Member of the scientific council of the CRISTAL‌ laboratory (3-4h/month).
Jérémie Dequidt‌ : Member of the‌‌ scientific council of CRIStAL and coordinator of the‌ CO2 thematic group.
Gang‌ Zheng : Member of‌‌ the board of Ecole Doctorale MADIS in the‌ domain of AGITSI.
Gang‌ Zheng : Member of‌‌ CER (Commission des Emplois de Recherche) of Inria‌ Lille.

11.2 Teaching -‌ Supervision - Juries -‌‌ Educational and pedagogical outreach

11.2.1 Supervision

PhD:Agneyan‌ Dileep , in progress,‌ Fault-diagnosis and lifetime prognosis‌‌ of soft robots, supervised by Q. Peyron, V.‌ Cocquempot
PhD: Congjian Gao,‌ in progress, Parallel continuum‌‌ robots (design / simple I/O laws), supervised by‌ Q. Peyron, S. Briot‌
PhD: Luciano Casanova, in‌‌ progress, SPH-modeling for micro-robots, supervised by J. Dequidt,‌ G. Laurent, A. Barbot‌
PhD:Zitong Yang ,‌‌ in progress, Rigid-flexible coupled mechanisms, supervised by G.‌ Zheng, A. Polyakov
PhD:‌Sizhe Tian , in‌‌ progress, Needle insertion simulation into active prostate phantom,‌ supervised by J. Dequidt,‌ Y. Adagolodjo
PhD:Luis‌‌ Fernando Maldonado Saavedra , Eco-design of parallel continuum‌ robots, supervised by Q.‌ Peyron, S. Briot, C.‌‌ Duriez
PhD:Antoine Alessandrini , in progress, Control‌ of deformable compliant robots,‌ supervised by L. Hetel,‌‌ A. Kruszewski, C. Duriez
PhD:Weizhe Liu ,‌ in progress, Design and‌ control of a flexible‌‌ endoscope, supervised by G. Zheng, I. Fournier, Y.‌ Adagolodjo
PhD:Xin Li‌ , in progress, Origami‌‌ mechanisms—design, modeling, control, supervised by G. Zheng, F.‌ Boyer
PhD:Ziyi Wei‌ , in progress, Robotization‌‌ of cochlear implant insertion surgery: modeling, simulation, and‌ control, supervised by G.‌ Zheng, C. Christian, Y.‌‌ Adagolodjo
PhD:Thomas Moupfouma ,in progress, Sensorimotor perception‌ in soft robotics through‌ modeling and simulation, supervised‌‌ by C. Duriez, J. Dequidt, Y. Adagolodjo
PhD:‌Yiru Guo , in‌ progress, Modeling and EMG-Based‌‌ Control of a Flexible Upper-Limb Exoskeleton, supervised by‌ G. Zheng, A. Polyakoy‌
PhD:Flavie Przybylski ,in‌‌ progress, Soft endoscope design and eversion robot simulation,‌ supervised by C. Duriez,‌ J. Dequidt
PhD:Azouaou‌‌ Ouyoucef , defended 12/2025, Modeling, Analysis, Design, and‌ Control of a Continuous‌ Parallel Robot for Industrial‌‌ Applications 26, supervised by G. Zheng, Q.‌ Peyron, F. Boyer.
PhD:‌Paul Chaillou , defended‌‌ 01/2025, Developpement of a soft robot for in-vivo‌ cancer scanning in MIS‌ 25, supervised by‌‌ A. Kruszewski, I. Fournier,‌ C. Duriez

11.2.2 Juries

Yinoussa Adagolodjo : was‌ a member of the Claire Marin's PhD thesis.‌ December 2025, Universty of Strasbourg (Examiner).
Jérémie Dequidt‌ : reviewer of Manuela Otti and Thuc Long‌ HA theses.
Christian Duriez : Reviewer of the‌ four following PhD thesis: Gavin Cangan from ETH‌ Zürich , Anderson B. Nardin from Scuola Superiore‌ Sant’Anna Pisa, Zeinab Awada from Université de Montpellier‌ and Zibo Zhang, from IMT Atlantique.
Alexandre Kruszewski‌ : was a president of the PhD defence‌ of Jorge IBARRA ANGULO,Decembre 2025, Université Polytechnique Hauts-de-France‌

11.2.3 Educational and pedagogical outreach

Azouaou Ouyoucef :‌ Automatique des systèmes échantillonnés (32h), Modélisation et commande‌ de systèmes (14h), L3-M1 Centrale Lille
Sizhe Tian‌ : Test et maintenance (6h), Bases de données‌ (12h), L3-M1-M2, Polytech Lille
Luis Fernando Maldonado Saavedra‌ : Programmation Structurée SE3-IOT (24h) L3-M1, Polytech Lille‌
Antoine Alessandrini : Commande d'un système (16h) Modélisation‌ et commande de systèmes (14h), Architecture des systèmes‌ embarqués (12h), Projets Start and Go (26h), Outils‌ pour la modélisation (4h), L3-M1-M2, Centrale Lille
Quentin‌ Peyron : Modélisation et commande de systèmes (10h),‌ Centrale Lille, Robotique médicale et continue (17h), IMT‌ Atlantique Nantes.
Damien Marchal : Enjeux Envrionnementaux et‌ Société (20h), Université de Lille
Yinoussa Adagolodjo :‌ 10 modules (Computer science, Robotics, Automation, Optimization, Industry‌ 4.0, Introduction to research, Industrial logic, Production systems‌ modeling, Learning monitoring), L3–M1–M2, Polytech Lille & IMT‌ Nantes $\sim$ 200h/year
Alexandre Kruszewski : lectures on‌ automatic control, embeded systems and control ( 100h),‌ L3–M1–M2. Coordinator of the "Embded and Cyberphysical system"‌ track for the last year of Centrale Lille‌ engineering school
Jérémie Dequidt : 5 lectures (Compilation‌ Toolchain, Embedded Systems, Software Maintenance, CI/CD and Data‌ structures), L3–M1–M2 200h/year
Christian Duriez , Soft robotics,‌ 24h, M2, Graduate degree en intelligence artificielle à‌ l'Ecole Polytechnique (Palaiseau)

11.3 Popularization

11.3.1 Productions (articles,‌ videos, podcasts, serious games, ...)

Christian Duriez was‌ interviewed for an article published in Science et‌ Vie (in the December 19 2025 edition)
Christian‌ Duriez participated to the book Résonance on the‌ topic of Arts and Science on the campus‌ of the University of Lille

11.3.2 Participation in‌ Live events

Christian Duriez was invited to give‌ a talk for the groupe de travail de‌ l’ANRT « One Health » on November 20,‌ 2025 and by the Master Centrale / Science‌ Politique on November 17, 2025
In collaboration with‌ the University of Edinburgh, Maxence Corailler contributed to‌ an art and science event: In The Shadow‌ Of Tomorrow (2025), a choreography with between suspended‌ robotic tentacles, featuring University of Edinburgh dance.
In‌ collaboration with Yosra Mojtahedi, Maxence Corailler and Thomas‌ Moupfouma worked on the Binary Objects (2025) Work‌ on the beating heart, inspired by our work‌ on the European Project SimCardioTest.

11.3.3 Others science‌ outreach relevant activities

Christian Duriez is member of‌ the board of the Art School Le Fresnoy‌ and member of the workgroup Science et Fiction‌ de l'humain piloted by this institution.

12 Scientific production

12.1 Major publications‌

1 articleY.Yinoussa‌ Adagolodjo, F.Federico‌‌ Renda and C.Christian Duriez. Coupling numerical‌ deformable models in global‌ and reduced coordinates for‌‌ the simulation of the direct and the inverse‌ kinematics of Soft Robots‌.IEEE Robotics and‌‌ Automation Letters62April 2021, 3910-3917‌HAL DOI
2 article‌E.Eulalie Coevoet,‌‌ Y.Yinoussa Adagolodjo, M.Meichun Lin,‌ C.Christian Duriez and‌ F.Fanny Ficuciello.‌‌ Planning of soft-rigid Hybrid arms in Contact with‌ Compliant Environment: application to‌ the transrectal biopsy of‌‌ the prostate.IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters‌72February 2022‌, 4853-4860HAL DOI‌‌
3 articleE.Eulalie Coevoet, T.Thor‌ Morales Bieze, F.‌Frederick Largilliere, Z.‌‌Zhongkai Zhang, M.Maxime Thieffry, M.‌Mario Sanz Lopez,‌ B.Bruno Carrez,‌‌ D.Damien Marchal, O.Olivier Goury,‌ J.Jeremie Dequidt and‌ C.Christian Duriez.‌‌ Software toolkit for modeling, simulation and control of‌ soft robots.Advanced‌ Robotics31November 2017‌‌, 1208-1224HAL DOI
4 inproceedingsC.Christian‌ Duriez. Control of‌ Elastic Soft Robots based‌‌ on Real-Time Finite Element Method.ICRA 2013‌ IEEE International Conference on‌ Robotics and AutomationKarlsruhe,‌‌ France2013HAL
5 articleS.Stefan Escaida‌ Navarro, B.Björn‌ Hein, S. E.‌‌Stefan Escaida Navarro, S.Steven Nagels,‌ H.Hosam Alagi,‌ L.-M.Lisa-Marie Faller,‌‌ O.Olivier Goury, T.Thor Morales Bieze‌, H.Hubert Zangl‌, B.Bjorn Hein‌‌, R.Raf Ramakers, W.Wim Deferme‌, G.Gang Zheng‌ and C.Christian Duriez‌‌. A Model-based Sensor Fusion Approach for Force‌ and Shape Estimation in‌ Soft Robotics.IEEE‌‌ Robotics and Automation Letters542020,‌ 5621-5628HAL DOI
6‌ articleO.Olivier Goury‌‌ and C.Christian Duriez. Fast, generic and‌ reliable control and simulation‌ of soft robots using‌‌ model order reduction.IEEE Transactions on Robotics‌3462018,‌ 1565 - 1576HAL‌‌DOI
7 articleH.Haihong Li, L.‌Lingxiao Xun and G.‌Gang Zheng. Piecewise‌‌ Linear Strain Cosserat Model for Soft Slender Manipulator‌.IEEE Transactions on‌ Robotics3932023‌‌, 2342-2359HAL DOI
8 articleE.Etienne‌ Ménager, P.Pierre‌ Schegg, E.Elie‌‌ Khairallah, D.Damien Marchal, J.Jérémie‌ Dequidt, P.Philippe‌ Preux and C.Christian‌‌ Duriez. SofaGym: An open platform for Reinforcement‌ Learning based on Soft‌ Robot simulations.Soft‌‌ Robotics2022HAL
9 articleT.Thor Morales‌ Bieze, A.Alexandre‌ Kruszewski, B.Bruno‌‌ Carrez and C.Christian Duriez. Design, implementation‌ and control of a‌ deformable manipulator robot based‌‌ on a compliant spine.The International Journal‌ of Robotics ResearchMay‌ 2020HAL DOI
10‌‌ articleM.Maxime Thieffry, A.Alexandre Kruszewski‌, C.Christian Duriez‌ and T.-M.Thierry-Marie Guerra‌‌. Control Design for‌ Soft Robots based on Reduced Order Model.‌IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters41January‌ 2019, 25-32HALDOI
11 articleF.‌Félix Vanneste, O.Olivier Goury, J.‌Jonas Martinez, S.Sylvain Lefebvre, H.‌Hervé Delingette and C.Christian Duriez. Anisotropic‌ soft robots based on 3D printed meso-structured materials:‌ design, modeling by homogenization and simulation.IEEE‌ Robotics and Automation Letters52January 2020‌, 2380-2386HAL DOI
12 articleL.Lingxiao‌ Xun, G.Gang Zheng, S.Sofiane‌ Ghenna, A.Alexandre Kruszewski, E.Eric‌ Cattan, C.Christian Duriez and S.Sebastien‌ Grondel. Modeling and control of conducting polymer‌ actuator.IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics495-506February‌ 2023HAL DOI

12.2 Publications of the year‌

International journals

13 articleY.Yiru Guo,‌ A.Andrey Polyakov and G.Gang Zheng.‌ Homogeneous Unit Sliding Mode Control for Uncertain Mechanical‌ Systems.International Journal of Robust and Nonlinear‌ Control2026. In press. HAL DOI back‌ to text
14 articleT.Tanguy Navez,‌ E.Etienne Ménager, P.Paul Chaillou,‌ O.Olivier Goury, A.Alexandre Kruszewski and‌ C.Christian Duriez. Modeling, Embedded Control and‌ Design of Soft Robots using a Learned Condensed‌ FEM Model.IEEE Transactions on Robotics41‌March 2025, 2441-2459HAL DOI back to‌ text
15 articleA.A. Ouyoucef, Q.‌Q. Peyron, V.V. Lebastard, F.‌F. Renda, G.G. Zheng and F.‌Frédéric Boyer. Duality of the Existing Geometric‌ Variable Strain Models for the Dynamic Modeling of‌ Continuum Robots.IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters‌102February 2025, 1848-1855HAL DOI‌back to text
16 articleA.A Ouyoucef‌, Q.Q Peyron, G.G Zheng‌ and F.Frédéric Boyer. Durability-aware trajectory planning‌ and quasi-static control of a continuum parallel robot‌ for industrial applications.IEEE Robotics and Automation‌ Letters10112025, 12016-12023HAL DOI‌back to text
17 articleS.Siyuan Wang‌, H.Haibin Duan, M.Min Li‌, A.Andrey Polyakov and G.Gang Zheng‌. Invariant Ellipsoids Method for Homogeneous Leader-Following Consensus‌ Control.IEEE Transactions on Cybernetics553‌March 2025, 1323-1331HAL DOI
18 article‌Y.Yu Zhou, A.Andrey Polyakov and‌ G.Gang Zheng. Robust Finite-time Stabilization of‌ Linear Systems with Limited State Quantization.Automatica‌171January 2025, 111967HAL DOI

International‌ peer-reviewed conferences

19 inproceedingsA.Antoine Alessandrini,‌ A.Alexandre Kruszewski, L.Laurentiu Hetel and‌ C.Christian Duriez. Data-Driven Polytopic Approximation of‌ Non-Linear Systems Using Reduced Number of Vertices.‌Rocond 2025 - 11th IFAC Symposium on Robust‌ Control Design5916Porto, Portugal2025,‌ 92-97HAL DOI back to text
20 inproceedings‌O.Olivier Goury, S. M.Samuel Mohsen‌ Youssef, S.Simon Le Berre and C.Christian Duriez. Towards‌ Real-Time Simulation of Soft‌ Robots with Contacts using‌‌ a Method of Hybrid Hyper-Reduction.ROBOSOFT 2025‌ - 8th IEEE-RAS International‌ Conference on Soft Robotics‌‌Lausanne, SwitzerlandIEEE2025, 1-6HAL DOI‌back to text
21‌ inproceedingsT.Thomas Moupfouma‌‌, Q.Quentin Peyron, Y.Yinoussa Adagolodjo‌, S.Sylvain Caubet‌, J.-F.Jean-François Ollivier‌‌ and C.Christian Duriez. In silicone and‌ in silico: toward evaluation‌ of pacemaker lead implantation‌‌ based on soft robotics and computer simulation.‌RoboSoft 2025 - IEEE‌ 8th International Conference on‌‌ Soft RoboticsLausanne, FranceIEEEApril 2025,‌ 1-8HAL DOI back‌ to text
22 inproceedings‌‌A.A Ouyoucef, Q.Q Peyron,‌ G.G Zheng and‌ F.Frédéric Boyer.‌‌ Modeling, analysis and design of an extensible planar‌ parallel tendon actuated continuum‌ robot.RoboSoft 2025:‌‌ IEEE 8th International Conference on Soft RoboticsLausanne,‌ Switzerland2025HAL DOI‌

Conferences without proceedings

23‌‌ inproceedingsC.Congjian Gao, Q.Quentin Peyron‌ and S.Sébastien Briot‌. Design Exploration of‌‌ Planar Continuum Parallel Robots with Constrained Platform Orientation‌.International Conference on‌ Robotics in Alpe-Adria Danube‌‌ Region 2025190Mechanisms and Machine ScienceBelgrade‌ (Serbia), FranceSpringer Nature‌ SwitzerlandSeptember 2025,‌‌ 307-314HAL DOI back to text
24 inproceedings‌S.Sizhe Tian,‌ Y.Yinoussa Adagolodjo and‌‌ J.Jeremie Dequidt. Active Prostate Phantom with‌ Multiple Chambers.IROS‌ 2025Hangzhou (Chine), China‌‌October 2025HAL back to text

Doctoral dissertations‌ and habilitation theses

25‌ thesisP.Paul Chaillou‌‌. Developpement of a soft robot for in-vivo‌ cancer scanning in MIS‌.Centrale Lille Institut‌‌January 2025HAL back to text
26 thesis‌A.A Ouyoucef.‌ Modeling, Analysis, Design and‌‌ Control of a Continuum Parallel Robot for Industrial‌ Applications..Centrale Lille‌ InstitutDecember 2025HAL‌‌back to text

DEFROST - 2025

DEFROST - 2025

2025Activity reportProject-Team​​​‌DEFROST

Keywords

Computer Science​​​‌ and Digital Science

Other​​﻿﻿ Research Topics and Application​​​‌ Domains

1 Team members,﻿​﻿﻿ visitors, external collaborators

Research​‌﻿﻿ Scientists

Faculty Members​​﻿﻿

PhD Students

Technical Staff﻿﻿﻿‌

Interns​​​‌ and Apprentices

Administrative﻿﻿﻿‌ Assistants

2﻿‌​‌ Overall objectives

3 Research program﻿​​﻿

3.1 Introduction

3.2 Objective﻿‌​‌ 1: Accurate model of​​​‌ soft robot deformation computed﻿​﻿﻿ in finite time

3.3​‌﻿﻿ Objective 2: Model based​​﻿﻿ control of soft robot​​​‌ behavior

3.4 Objective​‌﻿﻿ 3: Modeling interaction with​​﻿﻿ a complex environment

3.5 Objective 4: Soft﻿​​﻿ Robotics Software

3.6 Objective 5:﻿​​﻿ Validation and application demonstrations​​​‌

4﻿‌​‌ Application domains

4.1 Industry﻿​​﻿

4.2 Personal and​‌﻿﻿ service robotics

4.3 Entertainment​‌﻿﻿ industry and arts

4.4﻿‌​‌ Medical Applications

5﻿​​﻿ Social and environmental responsibility​​​‌

5.1 Footprints of﻿​​﻿ research activities

5.1.1 Traveling﻿​​﻿

5.1.2 Daily​​﻿﻿ commuting

5.1.3 Sharing objectives externally​​​‌

5.2 Impact​​​‌ of research results

6 Highlights of﻿​​﻿ the year

6.1 Awards​​​‌

6.2 PEPR﻿​​﻿ O2R days organization

6.3 Organization and﻿‌​‌ Hosting of the EECI﻿​​﻿ IGSC Course

6.4 Organization​​​‌ of a workshop at﻿﻿﻿‌ IFAC Mechatronics and Robotics﻿‌​‌

7 Latest software​​​‌ developments, platforms, open data﻿​﻿﻿

7.1 Latest software developments​‌﻿﻿

7.1.1 SoftRobots

7.1.2​‌﻿﻿ Model Order Reduction Plugin​​﻿﻿ for SOFA

7.1.3 SoftRobots.Inverse

7.1.4 Cosserat plugin

7.1.5 SofaGym​‌﻿﻿

7.1.6 SofaGLFW

7.1.7 SofaViscoElastic

7.1.8 CondensedFEMModel

7.1.9 SOFA

7.1.10 Sofa.PointCloud

7.2 New platforms​‌﻿﻿

7.2.1 Foam-Bot

7.2.2​​​‌ Active prostate phantom

7.2.3 Virtual Twins﻿‌​‌

Endoscope twin﻿​​﻿

Caroca twin

Micro Parallel twin​​​‌

8 New​​​‌ results

8.1 Duality of﻿​﻿﻿ the existing geometric variable​‌﻿﻿ strain models for the​​﻿﻿ dynamic modelling of continuum​​​‌ robots

8.2 Durability-aware trajectory planning​‌﻿﻿ and quasi-static control of​​﻿﻿ a continuum parallel robot​​​‌ for industrial applications

8.3 Active Prostate﻿​​﻿ Phantom with Multiple Chambers​​​‌

8.4 Data-Driven Polytopic﻿﻿﻿‌ Approximation of Non-Linear Systems﻿‌​‌ Using Reduced Number of﻿​​﻿ Vertices

8.5 In silicone﻿‌​‌ and in silico: toward﻿​​﻿ evaluation of pacemaker lead​​​‌ implantation based on soft﻿﻿﻿‌ robotics and computer simulation﻿‌​‌

8.6​​​‌ Modeling, Embedded Control and﻿​﻿﻿ Design of Soft Robots​‌﻿﻿ using a Learned Condensed​​﻿﻿ FEM Model

8.7 Homogeneous Unit​​﻿﻿ Sliding Mode Control for​​​‌ Uncertain Mechanical Systems

8.8 Design﻿​​﻿ Exploration of Planar Continuum​​​‌ Parallel Robots with Constrained﻿﻿﻿‌ Platform Orientation

8.9 Towards﻿﻿﻿‌ Real-Time Simulation of Soft﻿‌​‌ Robots with Contacts using﻿​​﻿ a Method of Hybrid​​​‌ Hyper-Reduction.

9 Bilateral contracts﻿​﻿﻿ and grants with industry​‌﻿﻿

9.1 Bilateral grants with​​﻿﻿ industry

9.1.1 Caranx Medical​​​‌

9.1.2﻿​﻿﻿ Compliance Robotics

10​​​‌ Partnerships and cooperations

10.1﻿﻿﻿‌ International initiatives

10.1.1 Associate﻿‌​‌ Teams in the framework﻿​​﻿ of an Inria International​​​‌ Lab or in the﻿﻿﻿‌ framework of an Inria﻿‌​‌ International Program

10.2 European initiatives​​​‌

10.2.1 Horizon Europe

IRE﻿﻿﻿‌

10.3 National​​​‌ initiatives

ANR PRC RPC-JaM:﻿​﻿﻿

ANR PRC ADAGIO:​​​‌

ANR DOMINANTS:

2025Activity reportProject-Team‌DEFROST

Computer Science‌ and Digital Science

Other Research Topics and Application‌ Domains

1 Team members, visitors, external collaborators

Research‌ Scientists

Faculty Members

Technical Staff‌

Interns‌ and Apprentices

Administrative‌ Assistants

2‌‌ Overall objectives

3 Research program

3.2 Objective‌‌ 1: Accurate model of‌ soft robot deformation computed in finite time

3.3‌ Objective 2: Model based control of soft robot‌ behavior

3.4 Objective‌ 3: Modeling interaction with a complex environment

3.5 Objective 4: Soft Robotics Software

3.6 Objective 5: Validation and application demonstrations‌

4‌‌ Application domains

4.1 Industry

4.2 Personal and‌ service robotics

4.3 Entertainment‌ industry and arts

4.4‌‌ Medical Applications

5 Social and environmental responsibility‌

5.1 Footprints of research activities

5.1.1 Traveling

5.1.2 Daily commuting

5.1.3 Sharing objectives externally‌

5.2 Impact‌ of research results

6 Highlights of the year

6.1 Awards‌

6.2 PEPR O2R days organization

6.3 Organization and‌‌ Hosting of the EECI IGSC Course

6.4 Organization‌ of a workshop at‌ IFAC Mechatronics and Robotics‌‌

7 Latest software‌ developments, platforms, open data

7.1 Latest software developments‌

7.1.2‌ Model Order Reduction Plugin for SOFA

7.1.5 SofaGym‌

7.2 New platforms‌

7.2.2‌ Active prostate phantom

7.2.3 Virtual Twins‌‌

Endoscope twin

Micro Parallel twin‌

8 New‌ results

8.1 Duality of the existing geometric variable‌ strain models for the dynamic modelling of continuum‌ robots

8.2 Durability-aware trajectory planning‌ and quasi-static control of a continuum parallel robot‌ for industrial applications

8.3 Active Prostate Phantom with Multiple Chambers‌

8.4 Data-Driven Polytopic‌ Approximation of Non-Linear Systems‌‌ Using Reduced Number of Vertices

8.5 In silicone‌‌ and in silico: toward evaluation of pacemaker lead‌ implantation based on soft‌ robotics and computer simulation‌‌

8.6‌ Modeling, Embedded Control and Design of Soft Robots‌ using a Learned Condensed FEM Model

8.7 Homogeneous Unit Sliding Mode Control for‌ Uncertain Mechanical Systems

8.8 Design Exploration of Planar Continuum‌ Parallel Robots with Constrained‌ Platform Orientation

8.9 Towards‌ Real-Time Simulation of Soft‌‌ Robots with Contacts using a Method of Hybrid‌ Hyper-Reduction.

9 Bilateral contracts and grants with industry‌

9.1 Bilateral grants with industry

9.1.1 Caranx Medical‌

9.1.2 Compliance Robotics

10‌ Partnerships and cooperations

10.1‌ International initiatives

10.1.1 Associate‌‌ Teams in the framework of an Inria International‌ Lab or in the‌ framework of an Inria‌‌ International Program

10.2 European initiatives‌

IRE‌

10.3 National‌ initiatives

ANR PRC RPC-JaM:

ANR PRC ADAGIO:‌

ANR ACCESS:‌

ANR Equipex+ TIRREX:‌

PEPR Accélération Robotique:‌‌

10.4‌ Regional initiatives

11‌ Dissemination

11.1 Promoting scientific‌‌ activities

11.1.1 Scientific events: organisation

General chair, scientific‌ chair

Member of the conference program committees

Reviewer‌

11.1.2 Journal

Member of the‌ editorial boards

Reviewer‌ - reviewing activities

11.1.3 Invited talks

11.1.4 Leadership within the scientific community

11.1.5 Scientific expertise

11.2 Teaching -‌ Supervision - Juries -‌‌ Educational and pedagogical outreach