Deep-reinforcement-learning-based robot motion strategies for grabbing objects from human hands

Abstract

Background: Robot grasping encompasses a wide range of research areas; however, most studies have been focused on the grasping of only stationary objects in a scene; only a few studies on how to grasp objects from a user's hand have been conducted. In this paper, a robot grasping algorithm based on deep reinforcement learning (RGRL) is proposed. Methods: The RGRL takes the relative positions of the robot and the object in a user's hand as input and outputs the best action of the robot in the current state. Thus, the proposed algorithm realizes the functions of autonomous path planning and grasping objects safely from the hands of users. A new method for improving the safety of human–robot cooperation is explored. To solve the problems of a low utilization rate and slow convergence of reinforcement learning algorithms, the RGRL is first trained in a simulation scene, and then, the model parameters are applied to a real scene. To reduce the difference between the simulated and real scenes, domain randomization is applied to randomly change the positions and angles of objects in the simulated scenes at regular intervals, thereby improving the diversity of the training samples and robustness of the algorithm. Results: The RGRL's effectiveness and accuracy are verified by evaluating it on both simulated and real scenes, and the results show that the RGRL can achieve an accuracy of more than 80% in both cases. Conclusions: RGRL is a robot grasping algorithm that employs domain randomization and deep reinforcement learning for effective grasping in simulated and real scenes. However, it lacks flexibility in adapting to different grasping poses, prompting future research in achieving safe grasping for diverse user postures.

Keywords

• Robot grasping
• Deep reinforcement learning
• Domain randomization
• Human-to-robot handovers
• Human–machine collaboration