Towards computing low-makespan solutions for multi-arm multi-task planning problems

Abstract: We propose an approach to find low-makespan solutions to multi-robot multi-task planning problems in environments where robots block each other from completing tasks simultaneously. We introduce a formulation of the problem that allows for an approach based on greedy descent with random restarts for generation of the task assignment and task sequence. We then use a multi-agent path planner to evaluate the makespan of a given assignment and sequence. The planner decomposes the problem into multiple simple subproblems that only contain a single robots and a single task, and can thus be solved quickly to produce a solution for a fixed task sequence. The solutions to the subproblems are then combined to form a valid solution to the original problem. We showcase the approach on robotic stippling and robotic bin picking with up to 4 robot arms. The makespan of the solutions found by our algorithm are up to 30% lower compared to a greedy approach.