Synchronized Robot Drumming by Neural Oscillator.

Abstract

Sensorimotor integration and coordination is an impor- tant issue in both biological and biomimetic robotic sys- tems. In this paper, we investigate a ubiquitous case of sensorimotor coordination, the synchronization of rhythmic movement with an external rhythmic sound signal, a signal that, however, can change in frequency. The core of our techniques is a network of nonlinear os- cillators that can rapidly synchronize with the external sound, and that can generate smooth movement plans for our robot system, a full-body humanoid robot. In order to allow for both frequency synchronisation and phase control for a large range of external frequencies, we develop an automated method of adapting the pa- rameters of the oscillators. The applicability of our methods is exemplified in a drumming task. We demon- strate that our robot can achieve synchronization with an external drummer for a wide range of frequencies with minimal time delays when frequency shifts occur