Service Robotics and Mobile Manipulation

Selected Projects

ROS – Component-based Software Development for Robotics

ROS – short for Robot Operating System – is a modern software framework for the fast development of robot components with a high degree of reusability. The framework, which has become widespread, capsules functionality in individual packages, ranging from drivers for most hardware to often used basic robot skills. With the ROS-Industrial initiative, the code base is also increasingly being professionalised for industrial use.

Contact: Dr.-Ing. Arne Rönnau

HORSE – Smart integrated Robotics system for SMEs controlled by Internet of Things based on dynamic manufacturing processes

HORSE aims to bring a leap forward in manufacturing industry proposing a new flexible model of smart factories involving collaboration of humans, robots, AGV’s (Autonomous Guided Vehicles) and machinery to realize industrial tasks in an efficient manner. HORSE proposes to foster technology deployment towards SMEs by developing a methodological and technical framework. HORSE will set up infrastructures and environments that will act as clustering points for selected application areas in manufacturing and for product life cycle management. The main strategy builds on existing technology and research results in robotics and smart factories and integrates them in a coherent framework. HORSE Centres of Competence (CoCs) will be established in four locations across Europe, in order to simplify usage and facilitate access to robotics by European industry and especially first users SME. In line with the EC initiative to support the European leadership in manufacturing through the adoption of ICT technologies, HORSE is an implementation of the second phase of I4MS, focusing on Advanced Robotics for manufacturing.

Contact: Dr.-Ing. Arne Rönnau

SeRoNet - Service Robotics Network

The project "SeRoNet – Servicerobotik-Netzwerk" (service robotics network), will reduce the costs, time and efforts for software development for robot solutions significantly by providing a B2B platform for the collaborative development of service robot solutions. By standardising the description of existing hardware as well as software components and equipping them with interoperable interfaces, the integration effort for new solutions decreases significantly. The platform further helps in actually finding the right components in the first place. In this way, new and innovative robotics solutions can be implemented cost-effectively and flexible.

Contact: M.Sc. Georg Heppner

KolRob: collaborative, intelligent robot colleague for specialised workers of medium-sized companies

The project KolRob focuses on the problems arising in the human-machine cooperation in industrial assembly. Lacking technologies and concepts, which have been impeding the full automation of assembly processes in the industry, are being identified thereby. The possibilities of a cooperative assembly are further developed by means of a concrete application scenario. Safety and workspace monitoring are just as important as the efficient distribution of assembly steps in the process. In cooperation with SMEs and large-scale enterprises, the limits of automation shall be newly defined and innovative, robotic solution approaches shall be transferred from research into industry.n.

Contact: Dr.-Ing. Arne Rönnau

Human Brain Project

By integrating neuroscientifc data and interdisciplinary knowledge, the Human Brain Project (HBP) provides the basis for a new kind of brain research. Its main goals are to gain fundamental insights about the human brain, to discover new treatments for brain diseases, and to develop new brain-inspired computer technologies.

The project is funded by the European Commission under the Grant Agreement FP7-604102.

Contact: Dr.-Ing. Stefan Ulbrich

HoLL-Therm

The dynamic flexibilisation of energy consumption is one of the main pillars of the energy transition. Buildings consume approximately one third of the generated electricity worldwide and thus provide a high potential for such a dynamisation of the demand side. In this context, the HoLL-Therm project focuses on the flexibilisation of thermal and electrical energy consumption.

Contact: Dr.-Ing. Fabian Rigoll

NeuroReact - Echtzeitfähige neuronale Planung für reaktive Industrieroboter

Neuromorphe Systeme zeichnen sich durch schnelle, hoch parallele und energieeffiziente Rechenvorgänge aus. Außerdem sind sie sehr flexibel und wenig empfindlich gegenüber Hardwareausfällen, aufgrund ihrer Fähigkeit zu lernen und sich anzupassen. Die jüngsten Entwicklungen im Bereich neuromorpher Hardware und neuartiger Sensorik eröffnen die Möglichkeit diese Errungenschaften für Industrieroboter zu nutzen. In NeuroReact wird neuromorphe Hardware mit Forschungsergebnissen aus der Neurorobotik kombiniert um echtzeitfähige, reaktive Planungssysteme zu realisieren.

Contact: M.Sc. Lea Steffen

ROBINA – Robot-supported services for individual- and resource-focused intensive and palliative care for people with ALS

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that leads to progressive paralysis and thus requires an intensive support and treatment Robotic assistance systems can offer support in complex care situations and thus increase the autonomy and intimacy of the patient.

In the project ROBINA, a breakthrough in the development of the direct human-robot interaction and robotic care is achieved: The combination of sensitive robot hardware with force-regulated robot controllers of the FZI enable the execution of sensitive tasks such as scratching with a brush.

Contact: Christoph Zimmermann

AuRorA - Autonomous robots for assistance functions: Interactive basic skills

Current developments in the context of human-robot cooperation in production, but also advances in the areas of manipulation and navigation, open up new opportunities and markets for service robots outside industrial workshops. This project concentrates on supporting and relieving people through interactive, proactive robot behaviour in a smart home or smart hotel. The robot serves as a real avatar that makes interaction with the abstract environment easier and more natural and offers motor assistance.

In a smart home or smart hotel, a proactive robot supports and relieves the occupants or guests of everyday tasks. What is innovative is that the robot independently learns new interactive behavior that links events such as "ringing at the door" with robot reactions. Depending on the transition probabilities already learned, the robot's dialogue with humans changes from a questioning to an informative character. The adaptive dialogues together with the non-verbal reactions of the robot ensure a high acceptance and quality of the interaction. The learned behaviour will be intensively evaluated in two practical scenarios, receiveing/guiding guests and cooking, with regard to robustness and transferability.

Contact: Christoph Zimmermann

ROBDEKON - Robot systems for the decontamination in hazardous environments

The competence centre ROBDEKON and especially the FZI focus on developing robot systems, technologies and methods that can be used in hazardous environments in particular, e.g. in contaminated areas. The aim is to protect humans and especially emergency services against the dangers, by means of decontamination robots. Not only humans, but also the environment shall be protected by removing contaminations and dangers. The robotics competence centre thus contributes to civil security and for more quality of life in Germany.

Contact: Dipl.-Ing. Arne Rönnau

HoLLiE – The Assistance Robot

The combination of robust state-of-the-art industrial components with a flexible software framework for environment perception and robot control enables HoLLiE to manage complex tasks easily and support people in everyday situations.

Contact: Dr.-Ing. Arne Rönnau

LAURON - bio-inspired, six-legged walking robot

The bio-inspired, six-legged walking robot LAURON was developed at the FZI (Research Center for Information Technology) in Karlsruhe, Germany, with the target to test and enhance statically stable walking in difficult and rough terrain. The department Interactive Diagnosis and Servicesystems began their first theoretical analysis and design studies on six-legged walking in the early 90s. In 1994 the first walking robot LAURON (Legged AUtonomous RObot Neural Controlled) was presented to the public at the CeBit in Hannover, Germany.

Contact: Dr.-Ing. Arne Rönnau

DEXMART – Dual-Hand Manipulation in Service Robotics

What would it be like if robots learned the most by observing and imitating just like children? Researchers of the FZI work together with researchers of KIT on teaching two-armed robots this skill. Through further developments of the method "Programming by Demonstration", robots become, for example, service personnel for cafeterias

Contact: Dr.-Ing. Arne Rönnau

iBOSS – An Intelligent Modular System for On-Orbit Satellite Servicing and Assembly

The goal of iBOSS is to significantly reduce the costs of satellite maintenance through norming, standardization and modularization. The modularity in particular enables to replace damaged or outdated satellite modules instead of changing the complete satellite, as it is performed nowadays. The long term objective is to achieve easy maintenance through serviceability. Therefore, techniques and knowledge, developed and used for service robotics, will be transferred to such space systems allowing users to design and simulate new satellites in very little time with new, specialized software tools. With such a process, low ready-to-launch times can be achieved, which are crucial in the market of satellite systems.

Contact: M.Sc. Johannes Mangler

InBOT – Interactive Behaviour Operated Trolley

The robot InBOT was developed, in order to examine and forward the use of robotics technologies in everyday environments of humans.

Contact: Dr.-Ing. Arne Rönnau

ISABEL – Innovativer Serviceroboter mit Autonomie und intuitiver Bedienung für effiziente Handhabung und Logistik

Zusammen mit den Projektpartnern KUKA, Infineon, macio, Celisca und dem Fraunhofer IFF werden im Rahmen des BMBF-Projekts ISABEL Serviceroboter für das Anwendungsfeld Materiallogistik und Handhabung entwickelt, die im Gegensatz zu herkömmlichen fahrerlosen Transportsystemen mittels ihrer Manipulatoren in der Lage sind, Produkte autonom aufzunehmen, abzulegen bzw. in Bearbeitungsmaschinen einzulegen und zu entnehmen.

Contact: Dr.-Ing. Arne Rönnau

KAIRO 3 – Modular Snake-like Inspection Robot

The department Interactive Diagnosis and Service Systems (IDS) began the development of modular inspection robots more than 15 years ago. The snake-like KAIRO 3 (Karlsruhe Autonomous Inspection Robot) represents the most recent snake-like robot following in the footsteps of its predecessors KAIRO (1997), Makro (1999), MakroPLUS (2004) and KAIRO II (2008). It has been developed for inspection and maintenance tasks, especially in areas which are difficult to access or dangerous for humans. Such areas are, for example, pipelines or maintenance shafts with small openings, or hazardous environments. With its modular and flexible construction, KAIRO 3 is well suited for a wide range of applications. This includes tasks like searching for explosives, inspection of narrow support tunnels and, of course, search and rescue missions after disasters.

Contact: M.Sc. Marvin Grosse Besselmann

LAUROPE – Participant of to the DLR SpaceBot Cup Competition

FZI is one of ten teams taking part in the DLR Space Administration (German Aerospace Center) space robotics competition SpaceBot Cup. The challenge of this competition is a planetary surface exploration mission. The tasks concentrate on locating, transporting and assembling objects – required for scientific experiments or construction of an infrastructure – in realistic, moonlike surroundings. The FZI team – LAUROPE – will send the hexapod robot LAURON V as well as a lander infrastructure to master the challenges posed by the competition.

Contact: Dr.-Ing. Arne Rönnau

ReApp - Wiederverwendbare Roboterapplikationen für flexible Roboteranlagen basierend auf ROS Industrial

Im Rahmen des ReApp Projekts verfolgt das FZI das Ziel, semantische Technologien und Beschreibungssprachen in wiederverwendbare "Roboter-Apps" für die geplante industrietaugliche Integrationsplattform verfügbar zu machen, um vor allem auch KMUs bei der Modellierung, Programmierung und dem Deployment von Roboterapplikationen zu unterstützen. Zusammen mit zahlreichen Projektpartnern wie zum Beispiel dem Fraunhofer IPA, KIT, Sick, Ruhrbotics und BMW versucht das FZI mittels ROS Industrial und "Roboter-Apps" die Programmierkosten zu reduzieren und so Robotik mittelstandtauglich zu machen.

Contact: Dr.-Ing. Arne Rönnau

viEMA – vernetzte, informationsbasierte Einlern- und Ausführungsstrategien für autonome Montagearbeitsabläufe

Im BMWi-Projekt viEMA haben fünf Forschungspartner eine lernende Roboterzelle gebaut, die flexibel an Handarbeitsplätzen aushelfen kann, wenn hohe Stückzahlen anfallen. Die kluge Maschine scannt die Werkstücke, vergleicht sie mit ihrer Teile-Bibliothek und wählt aus einer Griffe-Datenbank eine Greifstrategie aus. Sie kann ohne Programmierkenntnisse eingerüstet werden und braucht keine feste Installation.

Contact: Dr.-Ing. Arne Rönnau

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