An Open-Source Tele-Operated Mobile Manipulator: CHAP V1

Teleoperated mobile manipulators are of use for disabled people and for the wider public interested in acting at distance. The high price of existing devices is a barrier to their diffusion. The paper reports on the first design produced in the Cheap Arm Project (CHAP). It costs less than £2000, uses easily available parts and can be assembled by anybody with basic technical skills. The manipulator can reach objects from floor-level up to shelves at a height of 170 cm using a new low-cost arm design. Teleoperation is be done using a tablet, smartphone or browser. The cost could be further reduced by using different servo motors. The design and assembly instructions are made available on the open-source repository GitHub, with the hope that the community will build and improve the design. The first version has been tested in a college for disabled young people who provided initial recommendations for improvement.