Embodied Navigation for Mobile Robot by Using Direct 3D Drawing in the Air

This paper proposes a method to navigate a mobile robot in human environment via an interaction through virtual 3D tines, which are handwritten in the air by a robot user who coexists with the robot. The objective of this navigation is to develop the flexible instruction of the appropriate route for a mobile robot in adaptation of various situations easily by embodied interaction between robots and users. The developed system was also integrated with the aerial 3D drawing interface and control system of robots. Mobile robots and a drawing hand position are measured by 6DOF sensors simultaneously in real time. The 3D drawing interface allows a user not only to draw 3D lines in the air based on the sensed position in the real world, but also to push, grasp and throw a drawn line manually on site. Each mobile robots are distinguished by an association with a color information of each drawn line, and search the own tine in real time individually. Therefore, in this method, it was achieved that the user individually sets, and selects a specific route and change the route by drawing or manipulating lines while the robots are moving. We conducted some navigation experiments using two omni-wheel mobile robots and examined the aforementioned navigation function. Additionally, we tried some advanced navigation that can be achieved only by drawing, such as the dog-walking by likening a virtual line to string. As a result this method enables a user to instruct some complex path easily and change the root flexibly with interaction through virtual lines in response to changing environments.