Extending humanoids DCM-based walking to push heavy objects while walking

Abstract

Pushing large and heavy objects while walking is an important skill for humanoid robots to effectively assist humans with daily tasks. However, friction, high interaction forces, and the robot’s intrinsic limitations make performing this task challenging. This paper presents a DCM-based walking planning algorithm designed to account for the external forces the robot must exert while pushing a heavy object along a desired trajectory. The proposed algorithm is then combined with an inverse dynamics whole-body control to allow the humanoid robot to perform the task. Results obtained in simulation on the humanoid BRUCE prove the effectiveness of the proposed framework.