PICKNIK INC. — National Aeronautics and Space Administration SBIR Phase I: Z5

Description

To increase robot autonomy it is necessary that a robot can reason over longer time lines than is currently possible with minimal input of a human operator. We propose to develop a system (on top ofnbsp;ROS 2 and MoveIt 2) that enables operators to command humanoids at a high level while still have the robot#39;s motions satisfy task-specific low-level motion constraints. This is done in two steps. First, we will develop several parametrized primitives that allow an operator to specify a broad range of constrained motions, including climbing in microgravity, turning valves, and opening doors. Second, we will develop a task construction framework that allows an operator to compose such primitives into much larger tasks. The task construction framework will be able to compute complete end-to-end continuousnbsp;motion plans that satisfy all relevant motion constraints. The operator will be able to preview these plans and select one for execution. We will also develop appropriate user interfaces that allow operators to specify complex tasks without having to write any code.