Exercise: A Robotic Duet

For this exercise, students will work in pairs to choreograph a compound ‘gesture’ in software using a simulation of a pair of two-link arms.

The addition of a second agent in the form of a second robot arm or double-pendulum creates new opportunities. You might choose some of the following goals:

  1. create movements with a sense of individual identity

  2. embody empathy and communication in movement

  3. portray the locus of attention via gesture and pose

  4. illustrate a process of turn-taking

  5. imply a dialogue

  6. express a relationship

The technical foundation for the exercise can be found in exercise2.zip. This version includes two sample scripts:

ndblpend_free.py
ndblpend_spirals.py

More detailed documentation on the sample code can be found under Double Pendulum Simulator, and library documentation under rcp Python library.

Learning Objectives

  1. Formulating a two-agent narrative as a choreographic concept.

  2. Formulating a choreographic concept as concrete physical movement goals for multiple agents.

  3. Formulating physical goal as feedback control calculations.

  4. Implementing feedback control in simulation.

Deliverables

  1. In-class demonstration of simulated behavior.

  2. Short blog post outlining goals, outcomes, and final code.