Kevin Best

🦿

Kevin Best

Controls Engineer / Roboticist

About Me

Hi! I am a roboticist and mechanical engineer that specializes in real-time control, optimization, and dynamics. I recently finished my Ph.D. in Robotics at the University of Michigan, where I have developed new data-driven methods for more effectively controlling robotic knee-ankle prostheses. If you’re curious, the recording of my defense is available on YouTube.

I’m looking for my next career step! If you are working on challenging and exciting problems and think that my skills would be a good fit for your team, please reach out!

Interests

Dynamics and Control
Robotics
Optimization
Machine and Reinforcement Learning
Biomechanics and Human Motor Control

Education

Ph.D. in Robotics, 2025
University of Michigan
M.S. in Robotics, 2022
University of Michigan
B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, 2018
University of Notre Dame

Featured Projects

Optimal Control

Contact-Implicit Differential Dynamic Programming

This project was developed for my Legged Robots course at the University of Michigan taught by Prof. Yanran Ding in the Winter 2024 semester. This work mainly follows the publication from Kim et al. “Contact-Implicit Differential Dynamic Programming for Model Predictive Control with Relaxed Complementarity Constraints”, IROS 2022.

Apr 30, 2024

Prosthesis Control

Data-Driven Impedance Control For Knee-Ankle Prostheses

The prevailing paradigm in lower-limb robotic prosthesis control is to use hand-designed controllers with heuristically tuned behaviors. While these approaches can be very effective, they are labor-intensive in both the design of the behaviors and in individualizing them to each individual at the point-of-care. In this work, we instead developed a data-driven control architecture that allowed the prosthesis to work over continuums of tasks without requiring manual tuning.

Jun 1, 2023

Optimal Control

Control of a Planar Ballbot with Obstacle Avoidance

This project was developed for an Applied Optimal Control course taught by Dr. Christian Hubicki in the Winter 2023 semester. I wrote a controller for a ballbot, which is a small, wheeled robot that balances on top of a basketball. The controller uses trajectory optimization and convex model predictive control (MPC) to navigate the world while staying balanced and avoiding obstacles.

Apr 28, 2023

Prosthesis Control

Open Source Leg

The Open-Source Leg project aims to accelerate research in the field of lower-limb robotic prostheses by providing a common research platform to the field. Senthur Ayyappan, a rockstar mechanical designer and software engineer, currently maintains and leads the project along with PI Elliott Rouse at the University of Michigan. Full CAD design files, software libraries, and other resources are available to the public to use free of charge. See www.opensourceleg.org for more information.

Jan 1, 2022

See More Projects

Featured Publications

T. Kevin Best, C. Andrew Seelhoff, Jeffrey Wensman, Robert D. Gregg (2025). The clinical effects of the Össur Power Knee with phase-based and default control during sitting, standing, and walking. Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation.

Cite DOI

T. Kevin Best, G. C. Thomas, S. R. Ayyappan, R. D. Gregg, E. J. Rouse (2024). A Compensated Open-Loop Impedance Controller Evaluated on the Second-Generation Open-Source Leg Prosthesis. IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics.

Cite DOI URL

T. Kevin Best, Cara Gonzalez-Welker, Elliott J. Rouse, Robert D. Gregg (2023). Data-Driven Variable Impedance Control of a Powered Knee–Ankle Prosthesis for Adaptive Speed and Incline Walking. IEEE Transactions on Robotics.

Cite DOI URL

T. Kevin Best, Curt Laubscher, Ross Cortino, Shihao Cheng, Robert D. Gregg (2023). Improving Amputee Endurance over Activities of Daily Living with a Robotic Knee-Ankle Prosthesis: A Case Study. 2023 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS).

Cite DOI URL

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