ROSIE: A ROS Adapter for a Modular Digital Twinning Framework

Abstract

As robotic systems become more interactive and complex, there is a need to standardise interfaces and simplify development processes. This is particularly pertinent in the field of manufacturing, where human-robot collaboration is on the increase, but where standards and proprietary software are key barriers to deployment and adoption.In this article we present the ROSIE Adapter, a general-purpose, modular adapter developed in ROS designed to support the creation and connection of industry-ready digital twins. Together with our previous work on the modular CSI digital-twin framework, we demonstrate how the ROSIE Adapter creates a versatile "plug-and-play" interface that simplifies the development of new robotic processes, and improves accessibility to novice users. Furthermore, the adaptor supports integration of intuitive interface devices, such as speech and augmented reality interfaces, which enable more natural collaboration. We describe the adaptor and its use in two real-world applications, demonstrate the ease of use via a three-day hackathon event, and provide results showing the faithfulness of the arising digital twins to their connected physical systems.