An Experimental Study for Multi-robot Coordination in Multi-story Building Construction Sites

Robots offer a promising solution to relieve workers from physically demanding tasks and improve safety and productivity in construction. It is critical that the robots on construction sites are coordinated effectively. However, most multi-robot coordination algorithms are designed for planar areas, neglecting the multi-story nature of building construction sites. It is still unclear how construction robots should be coordinated given the constraints of elevators while adhering to construction schedules. To fill the gap, this paper introduced the deployment of commonly used elevator algorithms and robot target allocation strategies in a multi-story construction simulation environment. Through a series of group experiments conducted in a simulated multi-story construction environment, we evaluated the performance of these algorithms and examined the characteristics of robot-elevator coordination. The results reveal that while existing algorithms with strong generalization capabilities are useful, they may be less effective in specialized scenarios like multi-story construction. This research contributes valuable insights into the future of automation in construction, paving the way for enhanced integration of robotic systems and elevator operations.