IkeaBot: An autonomous multi-robot coordinated furniture assembly system

• Main Authors: Knepper, Ross A. (Contributor), Layton, Todd (Contributor), Romanishin, John William (Contributor), Rus, Daniela L. (Contributor)
• Other Authors: Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (Contributor), Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical Engineering (Contributor), Massachusetts Institute of Technology. School of Engineering (Contributor)
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), 2014-10-07T18:30:12Z.
• Subjects: Article
• Online Access: Get fulltext

 We present an automated assembly system that directs the actions of a team of heterogeneous robots in the completion of an assembly task. From an initial user-supplied geometric specification, the system applies reasoning about the geometry of individual parts in order to deduce how they fit together. The task is then automatically transformed to a symbolic description of the assembly-a sort of blueprint. A symbolic planner generates an assembly sequence that can be executed by a team of collaborating robots. Each robot fulfills one of two roles: parts delivery or parts assembly. The latter are equipped with specialized tools to aid in the assembly process. Additionally, the robots engage in coordinated co-manipulation of large, heavy assemblies. We provide details of an example furniture kit assembled by the system.