Force-information based control of robots handling an object

Abstract

We propose an algorithm to control robots handling an object in coordination based on force-information. One of the robots is referred to as a leader, and the desired motion of the object is commanded to the leader. The other robots referred to as followers estimate the motion of the leader by themselves through the motion of the object and handle the object based on the estimated reference. The proposed control algorithm guarantees the stability of the resultant system, different from the conventional leader-follower type of robot control algorithms. The proposed control algorithm also specifies the internal force applied to the object, while handling the object in coordination based on robot dynamics. The experimental results using one degree of freedom mobile robot illustrate the validity of the proposed control algorithm.