Enhancing Dexterity in Confined Spaces: Real-Time Motion Planning for Multi-Fingered In-Hand Manipulation

Abstract: Dexterous in-hand manipulation in robotics, particularly with multi-fingered robotic hands, poses significant challenges due to the intricate avoidance of collisions among fingers and the object being manipulated. Collision-free paths for all fingers must be generated in real-time, as the rapid changes in hand and finger positions necessitate instantaneous recalculations to prevent collisions and ensure undisturbed movement. This study introduces a real-time approach to motion planning in high-dimensional spaces. We first explicitly model the collision-free space using neural networks that are retrievable in real time. Then, we combined the C-space representation with closed-loop control via dynamical system and sampling-based planning approaches. This integration enhances the efficiency and feasibility of path-finding, enabling dynamic obstacle avoidance, thereby advancing the capabilities of multi-fingered robotic hands for in-hand manipulation tasks.