Robo-HUD: Interaction Concept for Contactless Operation of Industrial Cobotic Systems

• Main Authors: Dominykas Strazdas, Jan Hintz, Ayoub Al-Hamadi
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-06-01
• Series: Applied Sciences
• Subjects: augmented reality; activity recognition; cooperative systems; gesture recognition; human–robot interaction; intelligent robots
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/11/12/5366

Intuitive and safe interfaces for robots are challenging issues in robotics. Robo-HUD is a gadget-less interaction concept for contactless operation of industrial systems. We use virtual collision detection based on time-of-flight sensor data, combined with augmented reality and audio feedback, allowing the operators to navigate a virtual menu by “hover and hold” gestures. When incorporated with virtual safety barriers, the collision detection also functions as a safety feature, slowing or stopping the robot if a barrier is breached. Additionally, a user focus recognition module monitors the awareness, enabling the interaction only when intended. Early case studies show that these features present good use-cases for inspection tasks and operation in difficult environments, where contactless operation is needed.