A Virtual Reality Simulator for Timber Fabrication Tasks Using Industrial Robotic Arms

Authors. Eric Bossecker, Aimee Sousa Calepso, Benjamin Kaiser, Alexander Verl, Michael Sedlmair

Venue. MuC (2023) Demo

Type. Demo

Materials. DOI ACM PDF

Abstract. Virtual Reality (VR) simulators are well known applications for immersive spaces. When it comes to Human-Robot Collaboration(HRC), training and safety are important aspects that can be supported by simulators. In this demo, we propose a workflow between ROS and a VR application that allows the use of real robot programming plans to control the robot’s digital twin. We also provide the results of a short evaluation that was done with 6 experts, where they provided insights for future improvement and use cases. Our demo is the first step towards a full integrated system where path planning and fabrication steps can be tested with users without any of the risk and cost that are involved when using real industrial robots.

@inproceedings{10.1145/3603555.3609316,
    title        = {A Virtual Reality Simulator for Timber Fabrication Tasks Using Industrial Robotic Arms},
    author       = {Bossecker, Eric and Sousa Calepso, Aim\'{e}e and Kaiser, Benjamin and Verl, Alexander and Sedlmair, Michael},
    year         = {2023},
    booktitle    = {Proceedings of Mensch Und Computer (MuC)},
    publisher    = {ACM},
    series       = {MuC '23},
    pages        = {568–570},
    doi          = {10.1145/3603555.3609316},
    url          = {https://doi.org/10.1145/3603555.3609316},
    abstract     = {Virtual Reality (VR) simulators are well known applications for immersive spaces. When it comes to Human-Robot Collaboration(HRC), training and safety are important aspects that can be supported by simulators. In this demo, we propose a workflow between ROS and a VR application that allows the use of real robot programming plans to control the robot's digital twin. We also provide the results of a short evaluation that was done with 6 experts, where they provided insights for future improvement and use cases. Our demo is the first step towards a full integrated system where path planning and fabrication steps can be tested with users without any of the risk and cost that are involved when using real industrial robots.},
    numpages     = {3}
}