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arXiv · 2508.00162

CHILD (Controller for Humanoid Imitation and Live Demonstration): a Whole-Body Humanoid Teleoperation System

Noboru Myers·Obin Kwon·Sankalp Yamsani·Joohyung Kim
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Abstract

Recent advances in teleoperation have demonstrated robots performing complex manipulation tasks. However, existing works rarely support whole-body joint-level teleoperation for humanoid robots, limiting the diversity of tasks that can be accomplished. This work presents Controller for Humanoid Imitation and Live Demonstration (CHILD), a compact reconfigurable teleoperation system that enables joint level control over humanoid robots. CHILD fits within a standard baby carrier, allowing the operator control over all four limbs, and supports both direct joint mapping for full-body control and loco-manipulation. Adaptive force feedback is incorporated to enhance operator experience and prevent unsafe joint movements. We validate the capabilities of this system by conducting loco-manipulation and full-body control demonstrations on a humanoid robot and multiple dual-arm systems. Lastly, we open-source the design of the hardware promoting accessibility and reproducibility. Additional details and open-source information are available at our project website: https://uiuckimlab.github.io/CHILD-pages.

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Noboru Myers, Obin Kwon, Sankalp Yamsani, Joohyung Kim. 2025-07-31. CHILD (Controller for Humanoid Imitation and Live Demonstration): a Whole-Body Humanoid Teleoperation System. https://arxiv.org/abs/2508.00162

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