Automatic Material Properties Estimation for the Physics-Based Robotic Garment Folding

Vladimír Petrík, Jakub Cmiral, Vladimír Smutný, Pavel Krsek, Václav Hlavác

Abstract: The estimation of the fabric material property during the folding is presented. The available techniques for the accurate garment folding rely on known material properties. Currently, the properties are estimated by an operator in advance of folding. We propose an iterative strategy, which updates the property while the garment is folded. The estimation is formulated as an optimisation task. It is based on measurements from a laser range finder. The proposed algorithm improves the estimation iteratively and prevents the garment from slipping at the same time. We demonstrate the estimation procedure for 10 fabric strips of different materials.