Lock & Key Precise Bimanual Manipulation
Date Completed: Dec. 6th, 2023
Skills:
ROS 2, Computer Vision, Search
Goal:
A robot inserting a key and unlocking a lock would be the ideal hardware experiment for the Fast Ergodic Search with Kernel Functions paper. Precise manipulation typically requires extremely precise actuators with hand-tuned controllers in robotics. Ergodicity, or exploring a space over time proportional to a target distribution, would allow a robot to use small explorations in the target region of the lock to overcome precision errors.
My Role:
I worked with two WidowX 250 arms to set up a MoveIt pipeline to piece together bimanual robot motions for the lock and key experiment. An RviZ configuration is visible in the background of the first video, showing the planned robot motions in simulation. The second video shows a trial run showing how the two robot arms are working in unison> to move ergodically and try to insert the key in the lock.
Modifications:
Ultimately, the final experiment for the paper ended up being a pick and place demonstration instead. Why? Safety. The rigidity of the lock and key, inconsistent grasping of the key and lock in the widow arms, and lack of impedance feedback were some of the reasons why we switched to a single, Sawyer arm instead. Furthermore, inserting the key into the lock requires more sequential exploration along the axis of the lock hole; if the robot attempted to explore orthogonal to that axis, the key could snap or the robot's motors could be damaged.
Still a really cool experiment to set up! One day, this will be a commonplace task for robots...