Complete Repo, Amazon robot contest in Japan "Amazon Robotics Challenge" Final final, what is the robot who controlled the battle of incandescence?

The Amazon-sponsored robot contest "Amazon Picking Challenge" is from the 3 rd conference "Amazon Robotics Challenge (Amazon Robotics Challenge)"RoboCup 2017 was held at Port Messe Nagoya where the Nagoya World Congress was held. The appearance of the Amazon Robotics Challenge (ARC) final in July 30, 2017 is like this. A fierce battle was fought by robot developers gathered from all over the world.

AR Challenge :: Amazon Robotics
https://www.amazonrobotics.com/#/roboticschallenge

Interview with Joey Durham of the head of the event
As the venue was busy preparing for the finals, I was able to listen to ARC's attention to Amazon Robotics' advanced research leader and researcher Joey Durham, ARC competition director.


GIGAZINE:
The name of the third competition was changed to Amazon Robotics Challenge, please tell us about the changes and improvements.

Mr. Durham:
I have competed in two kinds of events, "Pick (Shelf) Challenge" and "Sto (Shelf Putting) Challenge". There are two major changes from this time. One is that the team can not see half of the items to sort until just before. The other is that we design the storage system that houses items. Through these improvements, the name has also been changed to Amazon Robotics Challenge.


GIGAZINE:
A new rule was introduced and the competition was already carried out in each task of picking on the first day of the tournament and stowing on the second day. When you put in the preparation day for 2 days, please watch the work of 3 days and let each team know whether you are struggling hard or even better than you imagined.

Mr. Durham:
It is very impressive. The reason for changing the rules is to encourage innovation of each team and encourage the development of new technologies. weAmazon RoboticsFrom the eyes of the team, each team seems to be very well suited to the new rules, and I am very impressed.

GIGAZINE:
What is the technical difficult point of ARC?

Mr. Durham:
As far as I can tell, today we are going to do a series of tasks, picking the desired item from a wide range of dense products for the first time in robot history, putting it in the shelf, taking it out and boxing it. It is the first time to do it in a series of flows. I'm thrilled with the difficult task of putting items in a dense state and taking them out further.

GIGAZINE:
Is the final goal of ARC an application to Amazon fulfillment centers?

Mr. Durham:
What we are aiming at by opening the tournament is to give inspiration to next generation robotists (robot researchers) who are responsible for robotics research. I'm throwing a fairly difficult challenge, but this issue is primarily a hint from Amazon's warehouse operations. However, it is not limited to the Amazon warehouse but exists as a general problem similarly in other areas as well. So, through this game, I think that robots will be able to handle every item in the future. I believe that the technology developed for that purpose can be applied in various fields in a creative way. I can not imagine what kind of technology will come out at the moment.

GIGAZINE:
Finally, please tell me about the sights of ARC.

Mr. Durham:
The competition is wonderful and the technology is also wonderful. It is certain that excellent technology, cool technology will appear through contests and competitions like RoboCup, but what I like very much, including ARC, is a community that supports teams and teams. As well as the teams that participate in RoboCup and ARC, I think there is a desire to "win", but more than that, the entire team, excited together with all the stakeholders including the community, cheering, send sports I like to join in.


GIGAZINE:
Thank you very much for your busy schedule.

◆ ARC venue
For ARC, a huge booth was set up at a corner of the 3rd exhibition hall of Port Messe Nagoya where the RoboCup 2017 Nagoya World Congress was held.


Inside the huge booth, 16 teams gathered from the world have individual booths.


Each team has a separate booth on the other side separated by iron screens, so you can see the work from the outside.


There was also a bleachers seat, but there were some huge monitors set up at the venue, and there were plenty of people watching while watching it.


Before the game on July 30, 2017 where the final was held. The booth of "NimbRo Picking" of Bonn University in Germany which passed the total score of the 1st and 2nd day top.


We set up a tower with an aluminum frame and a digital single lens camera on the ceiling. It seems that the whole work area is photographed and image recognition is done.


The picking robot of NimbRo Picking is a hybrid manipulation specification.


As well as suction by vacuum ......


It is also possible to grab things using movable claws. In addition, NimbRo Picking adopted a mechanism that clamps with claws so that it does not move firmly by vacuum.


Even in serious look ... ...


I was in a very relaxed state full of smiles.


By contrast, a very tense sense was at MIT Princeton University booth.



The booth covered with a tent is "IFL PiRo" of Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in Germany


Australia · Queensland Institute of Technology · Adelaide University · Australian National University · Monash University collegiate team "ACRV" was outputting parts with a 3D printer how.


The state of ARC final
· Team "ACRV"
I carefully observed the state of the final just beside the ACRV booth.


In the ARC, it will compete in two of the accuracy of the work of taking out the goods from the container as the "su towing" of the shelf Put task to put the items from the box using the robot arm to the container put in place "picking".


The ACRV arm seems to have specifications that "suction" and "grip" parts are on the opposite side, and rotate to switch work.


How surprised the sight that team members make a toast with beer just before the challenge.


Points will be added if you do exactly the shelf insertion / shelfing work that puts the goods in the red box into a box called "tote" after placing it in a box called "tote" It is basic ARC rule to compete for the total points of points. You can check the work of refilling many more items correctly with the following movie.

Australia's ACRV @ RoboCup 2017 - YouTube to watch the Amazon Robotics Challenge Final on a fun beer with one hand


Items that are difficult to lift by suction, the grasping action (grasping) exerts its power. Successful "grabbing" that is more difficult than suction is from the following movie.

The Amazon Robotics Challenge to Australia's ACRV succeed grasping @ RoboCup 2017 Nagoya World Tournament - YouTube


Also two birds with one stone sticking to the gloves when grasping the toilet brush.


Succeeding to suck up and lift the dumbbell which is one of the most difficult items. I will move the item one after another.


The final of ACR is 30 minutes holding time. Early work will be advantageous, such as having 1 point additional point every 5 seconds if all work is done quickly. In addition, the team can decide the time allocation of shelves and shelves, and ACRV will leave 19 minutes 20 seconds and move on to picking.


Installation of the cardboard box which does not contain "Amazon" logo is completed. Picking work is to find the specified items from the boxes that were transferred earlier and to divide them into boxes of different sizes.


You can check the status of shelling the items one after the other in the following movie.

Amazon Robotics Challenge Final ACRV Picking Work @ RoboCup 2017 - YouTube


ACRV hit a high score of 272 points and jumped to the top of the first half.


And MIT-Princeton appeared the second in the second half. I gained a lot of attention, but the score did not grow.


· Team "Nanyang"
At the booth of Nanyang University's team "Nanyang" just before the challenge. We have completed preparations from a considerably early point, and the team system centered on the leader received the impression that it is a coherent organization.


Nanyang is a suction type for both of the two robot arms, it does not grasp movement. It seems confident that anything can be sucked with a powerful vacuum.


The flag of the home country Singapore. Many teams proudly attached their national flags to their booths.


A box of checkered flag. The ARC has been changed to a rule that can design freely the equipment (tote) to be stored from this time. After this, Nanyang will show amazing picking work with excellent excellence in equipment design.


I pack things carefully in the tote. There seems to be meaning in how to pack.


ARC staff. We will check if the work has finished properly within the time.


Nanyang's team member covering the head of the ARC staff to check with hands.


This is to prevent not only injury but also to prevent errors from occurring in machines precisely assembled by collision.


The ARC staff installed the dumbbell vertically and the work was completed.


Nanyang 's challenge started on the 1st and 2nd overall competitions with a stable high score.


The robot arm grabs and carries the object surprisingly accurately. Nanyang's robot was designed to turn on vacuum only when sucking while there are many noisy robots with vacuum sound all the time.


You can check the way the Nanyang robot specializing in suction dumps the grasping motion, carrying things in amazingly accurate manner with the following movie.

RoboCup 2017 - YouTube RoboCup 2017 - YouTube


Successful also to the dumbbell that each team struggled.


I carry it surprisingly accurately.


Then picking work. Rubber band in the cardboard box to store.


I firmly fix it with a stay on rubber stopped.


I arranged a cardboard box in this way.


By skillfully changing the size of the tray, Nanyang's excellent idea to change storability and graspability can be confirmed in the following movie.

Amazon Robotics Challenge Final Nanyang Movable Tray @ RoboCup 2017 - YouTube


Also succeeded in adsorbing difficult tape.


The idea of ​​making the size of the tote a robot and making picking work easier has succeeded in greatly increasing the score.


· Team 'NimbRo Picking'
The last one appeared was the top score in the overall score, "Nimb Ro Picking" by Bonn University in Germany



Sometimes called a booth in front of the auditorium, it is packed full. I will watch the last challenge.


The commander to look at the monitor.


Robot movement and the result of image recognition were displayed on the monitor.


Image from the digital single lens reflex camera attached to the booth ceiling of the example. All teams fully utilize image recognition technology using machine learning.


Two robot arms will grasp the items one by one.


It also succeeds grasping.


Thus, the final challenge is over. NimbRo Picking regrettably went on to second place.


It was ACRV in Australia that had a celebration with beer earlier that decided to win.


The final result looks something like this. Japan's NAIST-Panasonic, which only entered the final, suffered from a reset due to a system error, struggling hard.


In the awards ceremony, the top team of striking on the first day, picking on the second day, the final day on the third day was awarded an Amazon-specific trophy trophy.






ACRV got a winning prize of 80,000 dollars (about 8.90 million yen).