When considering close interaction between a human & an aerial robot, one aspect that is unique to this scenario with respect to other ground-based robotic platforms is the presence of wind disturbances that act on the aerial robot. In order to realize aerial robots that can coexist & collaborate with humans, we must be able to guarantee the safety of
humans even in the presence of wind disturbances. Safety metrics can include minimum distances between the human and the robot, limits on robot velocity etc. The objective of this thesis is to design safety metrics that guide the robot's motion and interaction with the collaborating human. We expect that these safety metrics will be dependent on the
state of the robot and the environment. For example, the safety metric might depend on the possible bounds of the wind disturbance in terms of maximum and minimum values. The robot's configuration will play a role, for example, propeller tilting angles & the joint configuration of an articulated arm attached to the robot. The metric will depend as well on
the required task, for example, keeping an end-effector close to the human.
In this thesis, the student will have the opportunity to design, implement and test the safety metrics in a realistic simulated environment and possibly on the real aerial manipulator platform that is present at the RaM lab.