Hierarchical Decision-Making System for Service Robots.
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17979/ja-cea.2026.47.13815Keywords:
Intelligent robotics, Autonomous mobile robots, Mobile robotics, Human and vehicle interactionAbstract
The deployment of service robots in shared environments requires decision-making architectures capable of managing inte-
rruptions and maintaining continuous operation. This paper presents a hierarchical control system based on Behavior Trees (BT)
designed for the Sancho robotic platform. The system is structured into four priority layers: energy management, conversational
interruptions, high-level mission execution, and passive idle routines. Through its implementation in ROS 2 and the use of a
shared memory (Blackboard), the design separates decision-making from the underlying navigation, perception, and interaction
modules. Experimental evaluation in a physical environment demonstrates the platform’s responsiveness to context changes.
The system allows interrupting base navigation to attend to voice commands, seamlessly integrating newly queued missions,
and aborting execution in the face of critical events to ensure recharging, validating the feasibility of the design for unattended
operation.
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Copyright (c) 2026 P. Hormigo-Jiménez, A. Valencia-Rojas, A. Cañete-Baena, C. Galindo, J. González-Jiménez
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