The "Yore" mobile manipulator project provides an open-source, modular platform designed to lower the barrier for robotics research. Built for under $10,000, the robot utilizes accessible components like tabletop lifts and FRC-grade wheels to ensure affordability and ease of repair. The design prioritizes a slender form factor for navigating tight domestic spaces and incorporates intentional failure points, such as the wrist coupling, to minimize damage during operation. By implementing custom joint stiffness controllers, the robot achieves the compliance necessary for interacting with household objects like fridge doors without requiring complex, proprietary hardware. This project aims to move the field beyond isolated research islands by establishing a standardized, hackable platform that encourages community contributions, ranging from hardware modifications to advanced whole-body coordination policies, ultimately fostering a more collaborative and iterative approach to mobile manipulation development.
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