Bimanual Nonprehensile Robot Manipulation Using Environmental Support
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional robotic manipulation methods are inefficient and labor-intensive, particularly in tasks such as moving goods within distribution centers, due to their reliance on prehensile grasping and limited use of the environment, which can be difficult or impossible without suction or magnetism, and often damage delicate objects.
Innovation Solution
A robotic system employing bimanual and nonprehensile manipulation techniques, utilizing two opposing arms to exert forces on objects, allowing them to tilt or shift while remaining free to move, and leveraging the environment for support and guidance during manipulation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional prehensile grasping methods are used, then objects can be securely held, but complex grippers are required and delicate objects may be damaged
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces complex mechanical gripper systems with a simpler robotic arm system that uses controlled pushing and environmental interaction to manipulate objects. Instead of relying on sophisticated grasping mechanisms, the system uses basic mechanical contact forces combined with environmental features to achieve secure object handling without complex grippers
Solution Approach 2:
The patent enables objects to be manipulated through environmental support and guidance rather than active constriction by the robot. The environment itself (surfaces, gravity, geometry) provides much of the support needed to hold and position objects, reducing the need for complex active gripper mechanisms
2Reliability
If suction or magnetism is used for grasping, then delicate objects can be held without damage, but the method is limited to specific object types and requires additional equipment
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a universal pushing and manipulation approach that can handle diverse object types without requiring specialized equipment like suction cups or magnetic grippers. The same robotic arm and basic end effector can manipulate various objects by leveraging environmental features, making the system adaptable to different object types while maintaining gentle handling
3Adaptability or versatility
If human workers perform manual handling tasks, then flexible and adaptable manipulation is achieved, but labor intensity and time consumption increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The robotic system uses environmental features (surfaces, geometry, gravity) to provide support and guidance during manipulation, reducing the complexity and time required for robotic execution. By letting the environment do much of the work of supporting and guiding objects, the system achieves human-like flexibility without the labor intensity and time consumption of manual operations
4Extent of automation
If conventional robotic methods are used, then automation is achieved, but the system fails to leverage environmental features for support and guidance
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces environmental features as intermediaries between the robotic arm and the object being manipulated. Rather than the robot directly controlling all aspects of object manipulation, the system uses environmental surfaces, geometry, and physical features as mediators to provide support, guidance, and constraint, enabling more versatile and adaptable automated manipulation
Data Source
AI summary
A method in accordance with at least some embodiments of the present technology includes receiving, by a computing system operably associated with a robot, information corresponding to a position of an object in a working environment. The method further includes selecting, by the computing system and based at least partially on the information, a manipulation behavior for the object among a plurality of manipulation behaviors in a library of the computing system. The selected manipulation behavior includes repositioning the object and lifting the object after repositioning the object. At least one of repositioning the object and lifting the object is bimanual. Moreover, at least one of repositioning the object and lifting the object is nonprehensile. Finally, the method includes manipulating, by the robot, the object in accordance with the selected manipulation behavior.