A Method for Multi-Robot Asynchronous Trajectory Execution in MoveIt2

Abstract

This paper introduces a method that enables the parallel independent execution of trajectories for multi-robot / multi-arm systems in a shared workspace in MoveIt2. The proposed method leverages a centralized scheduler in a distributed set up to prevent collisions while the robots move independently. We argue that this approach is better suited than the state of the art (i.e., synchronous execution) for flexible/adaptive robotic tasks where the actions to be performed may vary in planning and execution time depending on sensor data (e.g., pick and place with inspection, assembly) as it is able to reduce the total execution time w.r.t. current approaches leveraging a single arm or multiple arms with synchronous motion planning.