Compliant Non-Prehensile Pushing Manipulation

In this work, we perform non-prehensile object pushing with a compliant robotic manipulation system to ensure safe operations in human-populated environments. We extend a state-of-the-art model-based controller to realize a desired pushing force while varying the contact point using an impedance-controlled robot. We then integrate an energy tank passivity-based control framework to modulate the velocity set-point in a way that preserves passivity of the system. The proposed method has been rigorously tested in simulation and validated through real-world experiments.