Motion Planning and Control for Shape Accelerated Systems

该奖项的研究目标是开发运动规划器和控制器，利用平衡移动的机器人的动力学来产生快速，动态，优雅的运动。该方法有两个主要组成部分：基本闭环运动策略的发展和混合控制架构的发展，将运动策略拼凑在一起，以产生更复杂的行为。首先在形状空间中规划轨迹，然后创建跟踪所得到的轨迹的反馈控制器，从而创建尊重系统的底层动态约束的运动策略。一个规划层，有一个了解的运动策略可以优雅地组成，用于确定运动序列，避免障碍物，并实现一些全球导航任务。 这些序列被编码在一个图形中，创建一个混合控制架构，适当地切换运动策略，以实现所需的全局运动。可供选择的项目包括算法开发、软件、研究文档、研究生教育以及在人类大小的球形机器人平衡机器人上演示所产生的集成系统。该奖项将为高中女生提供与平衡机器人互动的机会。如果成功，该奖项将提高平衡机器人在人类周围安全灵活地操作的能力。平衡机器人具有许多特性，使其成为人类伴侣和辅助机器人的理想候选人。与静态稳定的移动的机器人不同，平衡机器人可以同时足够高以与人类进行眼睛水平的交互，并且足够窄以通过杂乱的环境。平衡机器人在被轻推和推动时会自然地做出反应，使它们成为与人类进行物理互动的独特平台。 在这个项目中开发的运动规划和控制算法将为这些机器人提供一种手段，使其在人类环境中以自然的方式移动。将传播研究结果，促进这些技术的进一步发展，并激励广大公众。研究生和本科生将通过直接参与研究而受益，7-12年级的女孩将参与探索平衡机器人潜力的活动。

The research objective of this award is to develop motion planners and controllers that exploit the dynamics of balancing mobile robots to produce fast, dynamic, graceful motions. The approach has two main components: the development of elemental closed-loop motion policies and the development of a hybrid control architecture that pieces the motion policies together to produce more complex behaviors. Motion policies that respect the underlying dynamic constraints of the system will be created by first planning trajectories in shape space and then creating feedback controllers that track the resulting trajectories. A planning layer that has an understanding of which motion policies can be gracefully composed is used to determine motion sequences that avoid obstacles and achieve some global navigation task. These sequences are encoded in a graph, creating a hybrid control architecture that appropriately switches between motion policies to achieve the desired global motion. Deliverables include algorithm development, software, research documentation, graduate student education, and demonstration of the resulting integrated system on the human-sized ballbot balancing robot. The award will provide opportunities for high- and middle-school girls to interact with balancing robots.If successful, this award will increase the ability of balancing robots to operate safely and agilely around humans. Balancing robots have many properties that make them ideal candidates as human companions and assistive robots. Unlike statically-stable mobile robots, balancing robots can simultaneously be tall enough for eye-level interaction with humans and narrow enough to negotiate cluttered environments. Balancing robots react naturally when nudged and pushed around, making them unique platforms for physical interaction with humans. The motion planning and control algorithms developed in this project will provide a means for these robots to move in a natural-looking manner through human environments. Results will be disseminated promote further development of these technologies and to inspire the general public. Graduate and undergraduate students will benefit through direct involvement in the research, and 7-12 grade girls will be engaged in activities to explore the potential of balancing robots.