To operate safely and efficiently, autonomous warehouse/delivery robots must be able to accomplish tasks while navigating in dynamic environments and handling the large uncertainties associated with the motions/behaviors of other robots and/or humans. A key scenario in such environments is the hallway problem, where robots must operate in the same narrow corridor as human traffic going in one or both directions. Traditionally, robot planners have tended to focus on socially acceptable behavior in the hallway scenario at the expense of performance. This paper proposes a planner that aims to address the consequent "robot freezing problem" in hallways by allowing for "peek-and-pass" maneuvers. We then go on to demonstrate in simulation how this planner improves robot time to goal without violating social norms. Finally, we show initial hardware demonstrations of this planner in the real world.

翻译：为安全高效地运行，自主仓库/配送机器人必须能够在动态环境中导航并处理其他机器人和/或人类运动/行为带来的巨大不确定性，同时完成任务。此类环境中的一个关键场景是走廊问题，即机器人必须在与单向或双向人流通行的狭窄走廊中运行。传统上，机器人规划者倾向于以牺牲性能为代价，专注于走廊场景中的社交可接受行为。本文提出一种规划器，旨在通过允许“窥探-通过”操作来解决走廊中随之而来的“机器人冻结问题”。随后，我们通过仿真展示该规划器如何在遵守社会规范的同时缩短机器人到达目标的时间。最后，我们展示了该规划器在现实世界中的初步硬件演示。