The basic ideas of a proven dynamic collision avoidance approach for multi-robot manipulator systems

Abstract

This paper proposes the basic ideas of a proven dynamic collision avoidance approach for multirobot manipulator systems. The flexible use of multirobot systems requires new methodologies to ensure safe and collision-free movement of the controlled robots. The new method CARE (collision avoidance in real-time environments) that is presented in this paper is such a new safety methodology. Comparing this to existing approaches to collision avoidance, this new methodology has substantial advantages: (1) CARE makes sure, that the robots can generate the calculated evasive acceleration and avoid the collision at any time, (2) CARE is based on an intuitive, physically comprehensible and dynamic model of the collision process, which raises the confidence and the acceptance of such a safety system significantly, (3) CARE takes care of all potential collision dangers at the same time and, (4) CARE is model based so that it can be adapted to new robot kinematics or new robot work-cells only by modeling the new environment. All collision avoidance experiments with ERA have been carried out very successfully, whereby CARE has taken full control over the space robot.