Penalty-based Numerical Representation of Rigid Body Interactions with Applications to Simulation of Robotic Grasping

This paper presents a novel approach to numerically describe the interactions between rigid bodies, with a special focus on robotic grasping. Some of the more common approaches used to address such issues rely on satisfaction of a set of strict constraints, descriptive of the expected physical reality of such interactions in practice. However, application of constraint-based methods in a numerical setting may lead to problematic configurations in which, for instance, volumes occupied by distinct bodies may overlap. Such situations lying beyond the range of admissible configurations for constraint-based methods, their occurrence typically results in non-meaningful simulation outcomes. We propose a method which acknowledges the possibility of such occurrences while demoting their occurrence. This is pursued through the use of a penalty-based approach, and draws on notions of mechanical impedance to infer apposite reaction forces. Results of numerical simulations illustrate efficacy of the proposed approach.