DroneStick: Flying Joystick as a Novel Type of Interface

TL;DR

DroneStick introduces a hands-free, flying joystick interface using a drone and wire system, enabling intuitive human-robot interaction without additional equipment, suitable for applications like last-mile delivery.

Contribution

It presents a novel flying joystick interface that combines a drone and wire for intuitive, equipment-free human-robot interaction, with integrated force and vibration feedback.

Findings

Provides effective force and vibration feedback to users.

Enables intuitive control of robotic systems without training.

Suitable for last-mile delivery applications.

Abstract

DroneStick is a novel hands-free method for smooth interaction between a human and a robotic system via one of its agents, without training and any additional handheld or wearable device or infrastructure. A flying joystick (DroneStick), being a part of a multi-robot system, is composed of a flying drone and coiled wire with a vibration motor. By pulling on the coiled wire, the operator commands certain motions of the follower robotic system. The DroneStick system does not require the user to carry any equipment before or after performing the required interaction. DroneStick provides useful feedback to the operator in the form of force transferred through the wire, translation/rotation of the flying joystick, and motor vibrations at the fingertips. Feedback allows users to interact with different forms of robotic systems intuitively. A potential application can enhance an automated `last mile' delivery when a recipient needs to guide a delivery drone/robot gently to a spot where a parcel has to be dropped.