We present an approach geared toward estimating task execution confidence for robotic bin-picking applications. This requires estimating execution confidence for all constituent subtasks including part recognition and pose estimation, singulation, transport, and fine positioning. This paper is focussed on computing associated confidence parameters for the part recognition and pose estimation subtask. In particular, our approach allows a robot to evaluate how good the part recognition and pose estimation is, based on a confidence-measure, and thereby determine whether to proceed with the task execution (part singulation) or to request help from a human in order to resolve the associated failure. The value of a mean-square distance metric at a local minimum where the part matching solution is found is used as a surrogate for the confidence parameter. Experiments with a Baxter robot are used illustrate our approach.

We present an approach geared toward estimating task execution confidence for robotic bin-picking applications. This requires estimating execution confidence for all constituent subtasks including part recognition and pose estimation, singulation, transport, and fine positioning. This paper is focussed on computing associated confidence parameters for the part recognition and pose estimation subtask. In particular, our approach allows a robot to evaluate how good the part recognition and pose estimation is, based on a confidence-measure, and thereby determine whether to proceed with the task execution (part singulation) or to request help from a human in order to resolve the associated failure. The value of a mean-square distance metric at a local minimum where the part matching solution is found is used as a surrogate for the confidence parameter. Experiments with a Baxter robot are used illustrate our approach.

Low-level motion planning techniques must be combined with high-level task planning formalisms in order to generate realistic plans that can be carried out by humans and robots. Previous attempts to integrate these two planning formalisms mostly used either Classical Planning or HTN Planning. Recently, we developed Hierarchical Goal Networks (HGNs), a new hierarchical planning formalism that combines the advantages of HTN and Classical planning, while mitigating some of the disadvantages of each individual formalism. In this paper, we describe our ongoing research on designing a planning formalism and algorithm that exploits the unique features of HGNs to better integrate task and motion planning. We also describe how the proposed planning framework can be instantiated to solve assembly planning problems involving human-robot teams.