REAL-TIME SELF-COLLISION AVOIDANCE SYSTEM FOR ROBOTS USING ROBE

Abstract

In this paper, we propose a real-time self-collision avoidance system for robots which cooperate with a human/humans. First, the robot is represented by elastic elements. The representation method is referred to as RoBE (Representation of Body by Elastic elements). Elastic balls and cylinders are used as the elements to simplify collision detection, although elements of any shape could be used for RoBE. When two elements collide with each other, a reaction force is generated between them, and self-collision avoidance motion is generated by the reaction force. Experiments using the mobile robot with dual manipulators, referred to as MR Helper, illustrate the validity of the proposed system.