Neuroscience and Robotics Laboratory (NxR), Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois, USA


Active estimation with the Baxter research robot
August 11, 2015

Active estimation refers to the ability to interact with an object in a way that provides information about some unknown parameter. In this video, the Baxter Research Robot by Rethink Robotics has a ball suspended from a string which it attempts to swing into a nearby box; however, the initial estimate of the string length given to the robot is off by 8cm. Using an algorithm developed in the NxR Lab at Northwestern University, Baxter actively estimates the length in real-time using only measurements of the string tension provided by a load cell affixed to the gripper. With the updated estimate of the length, Baxter generates a new trajectory to complete the task successfully.
The algorithm and results are presented at the 2015 IEEE Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems.
 
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