VR tech allows puppet-like control of rescue robot
Scientists from the University of Tokyo have enabled their Jaxon robot to perform movements such as walking and and stepping with a telepresence system. The team used an HTC virtual reality Vive system which sent mapped human movements as commands to the robot. The addition of extra software ironed out any wobbles or trembles, allowing the machine to move smoothly and in a stable manner. Researcher Ishiguro Yasushiro admitted there remain weaknesses in the system to be ironed out, but said it had greater "flexibility and responsiveness" than rival designs, and could find applications as a rescue robot.
Rescue robots could be incredibly useful tools in the future, diving into situations too dangerous for humans. But if you’ve seen current-generation robots try to tackle these sorts of scenarios, you’ll know even the most advanced lack the coordination and flexibility of movement required. To fix this, a group of researchers from Japan are trying a new method of robot-control, letting a human operate a bot essentially like a giant puppet.

This sort of remote control system isn’t new, and usually comes under a branch of research known as “telepresence.” However, scientists from the University of Tokyo say their method (presented last month at the IROS conference) is more advanced than predecessors’. Earlier systems used smaller robots or only controlled the upper half of the bot; theirs controls an entire robot as big as an adult human, using controllers from HTC virtual reality Vive system.

The Vive’s “lighthouse” sensors are used to track its controllers in 3D space using infrared light. By strapping a controller to each foot and hand, the researchers were able to map their movements and send them as commands to their robot. The really clever part, though, is the intermediary software that ensures any motion sent to the robot are tweaked to fit its capabilities.

JAXON takes a few wobbly steps. Image: University of Tokyo

“For example, stepping at a walking speed is allowed, but running and jumping are forbidden,” researcher Ishiguro Yasushiro tells The Verge over email. Jerky movements are smoothed out, and fast ones slowed down, he says. “We force the robot to keep its gait always safe.” Yasushiro admits that the system still has “many weak points,” but claims its offers more flexibility and responsiveness than other designs.

The robot itself was built several years ago by the university and is known as JAXON. It previously competed in DARPA’s Robotics Challenge, which is meant to test bots in disaster scenarios. Although these humanoid machines are currently too unwieldy to be used in the field, it’s hoped that they’ll be more convenient in the future. After all, if they have to navigate a space built for humans (with doors, and handles, and valves), it’s handy to be human shaped.