No Arabic abstract
This paper proposes a controller for stable grasping of unknown-shaped objects by two robotic fingers with tactile fingertips. The grasp is stabilised by rolling the fingertips on the contact surface and applying a desired grasping force to reach an equilibrium state. The validation is both in simulation and on a fully-actuated robot hand (the Shadow Modular Grasper) fitted with custom-built optical tactile sensors (based on the BRL TacTip). The controller requires the orientations of the contact surfaces, which are estimated by regressing a deep convolutional neural network over the tactile images. Overall, the grasp system is demonstrated to achieve stable equilibrium poses on various objects ranging in shape and softness, with the system being robust to perturbations and measurement errors. This approach also has promise to extend beyond grasping to stable in-hand object manipulation with multiple fingers.
Handling non-rigid objects using robot hands necessities a framework that does not only incorporate human-level dexterity and cognition but also the multi-sensory information and system dynamics for robust and fine interactions. In this research, our previously developed kernelized synergies framework, inspired from human behaviour on reusing same subspace for grasping and manipulation, is augmented with visuo-tactile perception for autonomous and flexible adaptation to unknown objects. To detect objects and estimate their poses, a simplified visual pipeline using RANSAC algorithm with Euclidean clustering and SVM classifier is exploited. To modulate interaction efforts while grasping and manipulating non-rigid objects, the tactile feedback using T40S shokac chip sensor, generating 3D force information, is incorporated. Moreover, different kernel functions are examined in the kernelized synergies framework, to evaluate its performance and potential against task reproducibility, execution, generalization and synergistic re-usability. Experiments performed with robot arm-hand system validates the capability and usability of upgraded framework on stably grasping and dexterously manipulating the non-rigid objects.
We design and experimentally evaluate a hybrid safe-by-construction collision avoidance controller for autonomous vehicles. The controller combines into a single architecture the respective advantages of an adaptive controller and a discrete safe controller. The adaptive controller relies on model predictive control to achieve optimal efficiency in nominal conditions. The safe controller avoids collision by applying two different policies, for nominal and out-of-nominal conditions, respectively. We present design principles for both the adaptive and the safe controller and show how each one can contribute in the hybrid architecture to improve performance, road occupancy and passenger comfort while preserving safety. The experimental results confirm the feasibility of the approach and the practical relevance of hybrid controllers for safe and efficient driving.
In this paper, we introduce a sequential learning algorithm to address a probabilistically robust controller tuning problem. The algorithm leverages ideas from the areas of randomised algorithms and ordinal optimisation, which have both been proposed to find approximate solutions for difficult design problems in control. We formally prove that our algorithm yields a controller which meets a specified probabilisitic performance specification, assuming a Gaussian or near-Gaussian copula model for the controller performances. Additionally, we are able to characterise the computational requirement of the algorithm by using a lower bound on the distribution function of the algorithms stopping time. To validate our work, the algorithm is then demonstrated for the purpose of tuning model predictive controllers on a diesel engine air-path. It is shown that the algorithm is able to successfully tune a single controller to meet a desired performance threshold, even in the presence of uncertainty in the diesel engine model, that is inherent when a single representation is used across a fleet of vehicles.
Enabling robots to work in close proximity with humans necessitates to employ not only multi-sensory information for coordinated and autonomous interactions but also a control framework that ensures adaptive and flexible collaborative behavior. Such a control framework needs to integrate accuracy and repeatability of robots with cognitive ability and adaptability of humans for co-manipulation. In this regard, an intuitive stack of tasks (iSOT) formulation is proposed, that defines the robots actions based on human ergonomics and task progress. The framework is augmented with visuo-tactile perception for flexible interaction and autonomous adaption. The visual information using depth cameras, monitors and estimates the object pose and human arm gesture while the tactile feedback provides exploration skills for maintaining the desired contact to avoid slippage. Experiments conducted on robot system with human partnership for assembly and disassembly tasks confirm the effectiveness and usability of proposed framework.
Model Predictive Control (MPC) has shown the great performance of target optimization and constraint satisfaction. However, the heavy computation of the Optimal Control Problem (OCP) at each triggering instant brings the serious delay from state sampling to the control signals, which limits the applications of MPC in resource-limited robot manipulator systems over complicated tasks. In this paper, we propose a novel robust tube-based smooth-MPC strategy for nonlinear robot manipulator planning systems with disturbances and constraints. Based on piecewise linearization and state prediction, our control strategy improves the smoothness and optimizes the delay of the control process. By deducing the deviation of the real system states and the nominal system states, we can predict the next real state set at the current instant. And by using this state set as the initial condition, we can solve the next OCP ahead and store the optimal controls based on the nominal system states, which eliminates the delay. Furthermore, we linearize the nonlinear system with a given upper bound of error, reducing the complexity of the OCP and improving the response speed. Based on the theoretical framework of tube MPC, we prove that the control strategy is recursively feasible and closed-loop stable with the constraints and disturbances. Numerical simulations have verified the efficacy of the designed approach compared with the conventional MPC.