An automated guided vehicle for flexible and interactive task execution in hospital scenarios

We present the control architecture of a modular robotic system designed for hospital logistics. The robotics system is an automated guided vehicle that can autonomously perform tasks like carrying and delivering objects, medicines or devices, while interacting with humans in the hospital environment. Specifically, the robotic platform is designed to dock and move passive vehicles (like carts, containers, etc.), which dynamically change the robot shape and function during the task execution. We describe the overall control architecture focusing on the executive and the planning systems. We discuss the system at work in different scenarios considering both autonomous and interactive tasks.