Load equalization via proprioceptive force feedback

June 01, 2014 | 0 Minute Read

Previous research with Pepe, our PR2 robot from Willow Garage, was focused on manipulating bulky objects for which form or force closure strategies may be infeasible: in such cases, we may be able to constrain manipulated objects only unilaterally in some directions.

We recently focused on equalizing bulky loads applied to the PR2′s arms, which would be useful for humanoid dynamic balancing and reducing robotenergy consumption. Our simple and robust reactive strategy uses proprioceptive force feedback and manipulation with the arms (not the grippers) to yield exceptional performance: the robot never fails to equalize a load in over 75 experimental trials.

##Videos: ###Equalization of a cardboard box:

Equalization of bulky object with changing center-of-mass
We change the center-of-mass using small magnetic weights.

Equalization of non-rigid loads