Tapping into Touch

Abstract

Humans use a set of exploratory procedures to examine object properties through grasping and touch. Our goal is to exploit similar methods with a humanoid robot to enable developmental learning about manipulation. We use a compliant robot hand to find objects without prior knowledge of their presence or location, and then tap those objects with a finger. This behavior lets the robot generate and collect samples of the contact sound produced by impact with that object. We demonstrate the feasibility of recognizing objects by their sound, and relate this to human performance under situations analogous to that of the robot.