NimbRo-OP2X: Affordable Adult-sized 3D-printed Open-Source Humanoid Robot for Research

TL;DR

The NimbRo-OP2X is an affordable, open-source, adult-sized humanoid robot designed to lower research barriers, featuring modular hardware/software, onboard GPU, and demonstrated success in RoboCup 2018.

Contribution

This paper introduces the NimbRo-OP2X, a new affordable, open-source humanoid robot platform with modular design and advanced perception capabilities for research.

Findings

Won all awards at RoboCup 2018 AdultSize class

Demonstrated effective locomotion stability and visual perception

Lowered entry barriers for humanoid robot research

Abstract

For several years, high development and production costs of humanoid robots restricted researchers interested in working in the field. To overcome this problem, several research groups have opted to work with simulated or smaller robots, whose acquisition costs are significantly lower. However, due to scale differences and imperfect simulation replicability, results may not be directly reproducible on real, adult-sized robots. In this paper, we present the NimbRo-OP2X, a capable and affordable adult-sized humanoid platform aiming to significantly lower the entry barrier for humanoid robot research. With a height of 135 cm and weight of only 19 kg, the robot can interact in an unmodified, human environment without special safety equipment. Modularity in hardware and software allow this platform enough flexibility to operate in different scenarios and applications with minimal effort. The robot is equipped with an on-board computer with GPU, which enables the implementation of state-of-the-art approaches for object detection and human perception demanded by areas such as manipulation and human-robot interaction. Finally, the capabilities of the NimbRo-OP2X, especially in terms of locomotion stability and visual perception, are evaluated. This includes the performance at RoboCup 2018, where NimbRo-OP2X won all possible awards in the AdultSize class.