Human-robot physical interaction with dynamically stable mobile robots

Abstract

Human-Robot Physical Interaction is an important attribute for robots operating in human environments. The authors illustrate some basic physically interactive behaviors with dynamically stable mobile robots using the ballbot as an example. The ballbot is a dynamically stable mobile robot moving on a single spherical wheel. The dynamic stability and robust controllers enable the ballbot to be physically moved with ease. The authors also demonstrate other behaviors like human intent detection and learn-repeat behavior on the real robot.