Human-Multirobot Collaborative Mobile Manipulation: the Omnid Mocobots (2206.14293v2)

Abstract: The Omnid human-collaborative mobile manipulators are an experimental platform for testing control architectures for autonomous and human-collaborative multirobot mobile manipulation. An Omnid consists of a mecanum-wheel omnidirectional mobile base and a series-elastic Delta-type parallel manipulator, and it is a specific implementation of a broader class of mobile collaborative robots ("mocobots") suitable for safe human co-manipulation of delicate, flexible, and articulated payloads. Key features of mocobots include passive compliance, for the safety of the human and the payload, and high-fidelity end-effector force control independent of the potentially imprecise motions of the mobile base. We describe general considerations for the design of teams of mocobots; the design of the Omnids in light of these considerations; manipulator and mobile base controllers to achieve useful multirobot collaborative behaviors; and initial experiments in human-multirobot collaborative mobile manipulation of large, unwieldy payloads. For these experiments, the only communication among the humans and Omnids is mechanical, through the payload.

• The paper introduces an innovative Omnid mocobot system that decouples force-control from base-motion for safe human-robot collaboration.
• It employs a mecanum-wheel omnidirectional base paired with a series-elastic Delta manipulator for precise, compliant mobile manipulation.
• Experimental results demonstrate effective payload handling and intuitive human-robot interaction in industrial settings.

Human-Multirobot Collaborative Mobile Manipulation: The Omnid Mocobots

The paper "Human-Multirobot Collaborative Mobile Manipulation: The Omnid Mocobots" presents a novel experimental platform focused on the design and control of human-collaborative, multitasking mobile manipulators called Omnid mocobots. These mocobots introduce a significant advancement in the domain of multirobot systems, aiming to enhance cooperative manipulation, particularly in environments like factories, warehouses, and construction sites. This overview analyzes the salient contributions and implications of the research.

The Omnid mocobots are developed to execute team-based mobile manipulation, incorporating both autonomous and human-collaborative strategies. An Omnid is comprised of a mecanum-wheel-based omnidirectional mobile base coupled with a series-elastic Delta-type parallel manipulator. This configuration ensures passive compliance to safeguard human operators and delicate payloads, and it achieves high-fidelity end-effector force control independent of the potentially inaccurate motions of the mobile base.

Key design considerations outlined in this research include achieving passive compliance, enabling complete payload manipulability, and decoupling of the force-control task from base-motion control. These mocobots are capable of finely distributed force application over payloads to mitigate stress and enable the control of articulated or flexible payloads, thus expanding their utility in manipulating large items and structures.

The numerical experimentation presented highlights the effective collaboration of Omnids in rendering manipulative payloads effectively weightless, involving humans in an intuitive and low-effort manipulation process through mechanical-only interactions. Such strategic interaction leverages mechanical compliance and ensures safety by allowing the payload itself to serve as the communication medium between human workers and robots.

The implications of this research extend to enhancing practical robotic systems involved in human and multirobot collaboration, showing promising advances in the field of physical human-robot interaction. This highly coordinated mocobot system also encourages further exploration in overcoming challenges associated with multirobot autonomous manipulation, including payload property estimation and the optimization of cooperative tasks through human guidelines.

In theory, the Omnid mocobot concept introduces a compelling model for future multirobot team designs and their potential role in dynamic environments. By further developing their grasping and manipulation abilities and exploring advanced communication capabilities, these mocobots could see integration into outdoor and varied operational settings, revolutionizing approaches to cooperative automation.

In conclusion, while the research shares insightful initial results, further studies are suggested in areas such as mocobot designs with extended workspace capability, performance analysis, enhanced collaboration features, and autonomous manipulation. These advancements validate the mocobot framework and contribute substantially to the robotics literature on cooperative mobile manipulation and human-robot interactive dynamics.