Haptic Shared Control of a Pair of Microrobots for Telemanipulation using Constrained Optimization

Microrobotics implies actuation-related constraints that make safe telemanipulation particularly challenging. We present a haptic shared control system for electromagnetic-based telemanipulation of a pair of microrobots using a constrained optimization framework. Our contributions include: (1) a Quadratic Programming formulation with Control Lyapunov Functions and Control Barrier Functions, for safe and stable navigation in cluttered environments; (2) a shared control architecture, combining a haptic interface and simulation environment, to teleoperate the microrobots and enable micromanipulation capabilities; and (3) haptic shared control strategies offering visuo-haptic cues for task execution. The approach is validated through a user study, highlighting better navigation accuracy, control stability and task efficiency.