Flexible human-robot cooperation with shared task representation (FlexCobot)

在传统的自动化系统中，机器人被用于长时间重复执行相同的任务。围栏通常通过防止人类工人进入机器人工作空间来确保他们的安全。最近的进展使安全的人机共存没有这些物理障碍。由于人类和机器人能够在共享工作空间内安全移动，因此可以将人类代理集成到生产过程中。人类和机器人可以利用各自的技能实现共同的目标。通过智能机器人和人类特有的认知技能的这种共生组合，可以设计出混合和灵活的协作系统，这些系统适用于许多应用，例如小批量生产，服务，车间，实验室和家庭。研究项目“FlexCobot”的目标是开发和研究灵活的人机合作的新概念。给机器人系统的是一个人类和机器可读的任务表示，这是由基本操作。该任务应由人类和机器人组成的团队尽可能正确、快速、方便地完成。作为基础的范例，它认为所有的代理作为平等的合作伙伴，使每个基本操作可以由每个代理进行。基于这种范式，灵活性的团队组成，要承担的任务，和对象的人-机器人合作。使用原型实现，要回答的中心问题是：什么是一个适当的共享对象表示，一个有效的协调，一个或多个机器人的系统架构？

In traditional automation systems, robots are used to repeatedly perform the same task for a long period of time. Fences often ensure the safety of human workers by preventing them from entering the robot workspace. Recent advances enable safe human-robot coexistence without these physical barriers. With humans and robots being able to move safely within the shared workspace, it is possible to integrate human agents into the production process. Humans and robots can work on a common goal using their individual skills. With this symbiotic combination of intelligent robotics and the cognitive skills that are unique to humans, hybrid and flexible cooperating systems can be de-signed that are useful for many applications, such as small-series production, service, workshops, laboratories and households. The goal of the research project “FlexCobot” is to develop and investigate new concepts for flexible human-robot cooperation. Given to the robot system is a human and a machine-readable representation of the task, which is composed of elementary operations. The task shall be fulfilled by a team of humans and robots as correctly, quickly, and conveniently as possible. As basis a paradigm is followed, which considers all agents as equal partners such that each elementary operation can be carried out by each agent. Based on this paradigm, flexibility regarding the team composition, the tasks to be undertaken, and the objects is sought for human-robot cooperation. Using a prototypical realization, central questions to be answered are: What is an appropriate shared object representation, an efficient co-ordination, and a system architecture for one or more robots?