Object manipulation by hand using whole-body motion coordination

This paper addresses a control system for the coordination of whole body motion with hand manipulation. The goal is to control the position of the hand and/or external force at the hand. Whole-body motion control is necessary for both maintaining balance and realizing a wide workspace. Turning a crank is selected as the manipulation task. We describe a control strategy for turning the crank. We present a torso position and posture control method for extending the workspace while maintaining balance. Furthermore we demonstrate a stable walking control system that operates concurrently with manipulation and enables further expansion of the workspace. Experiments on a full-size humanoid are presented to demonstrate the performance of the system.