Implementing Search-And-Retrieve Tasks by Multiple Heterogeneous Robots

Abstract

Behavior coordination among a team of heterogeneous robots to perform a search-and-retrieve task is investigated. In our initial implementation, two robots with different sensing and actuation abilities are commanded to navigate into an unknown environment, to search for different types of plastic bottles, and then to retrieve the bottles. These two robots communicate and coordinate to pick up a lying bottle from the floor, which cannot by be accomplish by either robot. Four different visual servoing behaviors were employed to implement the search-and-retrieve task.