Aerial manipulators represent a relatively new field in the context of robotic ma-
nipulation, expanding upon the expansive and impactful applications seen for fixed-
based and terrestrial mobile-based manipulation to the third dimension. The field
has seen prolific growth in the past decade as these flying systems have leveraged
advancements in design, energy storage and compute to become readily viable tools
for real-world tasks. Many challenges are still present, however, as these highly
mobile platforms attempt to not only safely navigate within but also interact with
and manipulate their environment. The work here focuses on the broad concept of
compliance with respect to the robot’s environment, allowing the aerial manipulator
to react in a stable and predictable manner when in contact with a planned or un-
planned perturbation. As these flying systems are deployable within a large variety
of contexts, the scenarios in which contact between robot and environment is ini-
tiated are vast, and thus requires different compliance-based approaches depending
upon the interaction type and characteristic of the environment.
While compliance manifests both from a hardware and software perspective, the
latter is emphasized in the work presented here as we propose the use of a variety
of control and motion strategies that facilitate interaction. We frame our study by
categorizing the type of interaction and character of the robot’s environment into
binary groups: a simple or advanced interaction within a static or dynamic envi-
ronment. We then progress through three aerial manipulation scenarios: 1) simple
interaction in a static environment, 2) advanced interaction in a static environ-
ment and 3) advanced interaction in a dynamic environment. The precise nature
of the interaction and environment is rigorously addressed for each case. The aim
is then to address each scenario from a control and integration perspective, offering
an analysis on compliance-based controllers and their ability (or lack thereof) to
facilitate the completion of defined tasks. While the research presented here is by
no means exhaustive in this endeavor, the intent of progressing through these afore-
mentioned scenarios is to gain insight into the control and motion requirements of
an interactive aerial manipulator. Additionally, various aerial manipulation hard-
ware platforms are considered within each context, illustrating the flexibility of the
presented compliance-based control and motion methodologies