Overview

ALPHA-α is a stationary, DIY-friendly bimanual robot-learning platform centered on force-feedback bilateral teleoperation. Each of the two arms is an OpenMANIPULATOR SARA with 6 degrees of freedom, arranged in a leader-follower configuration (four manipulators total). The system supports position, velocity, and torque (current) control modes and collects joint angles, velocities, and torques at 1000 Hz alongside RGB imagery at ~100 Hz. Its four-channel bilateral control lets a human operator feel environmental interaction forces during demonstration, which the Bi-ACT method exploits for force-aware imitation of everyday bimanual tasks. Reported build cost is about $8,663 for the four manipulators — more than half the cost of a comparable four-arm ALOHA setup (~$19,359). Published in IEEE Access, 2025.

Highlights

• Bimanual leader-follower rig: 4 OpenMANIPULATOR SARA arms total (2 leaders + 2 followers), 6-DOF each
• Four-channel bilateral control provides both position and force feedback during teleoperation
• Force-aware imitation learning via the Bi-ACT method for everyday bimanual tasks
• Three control modes: position, velocity, and torque (current)
• Low-cost: ~$8,663 for the four manipulators, roughly half of a comparable ALOHA setup (~$19,359)
• Data logging at 1000 Hz (joint angle/velocity/torque) and ~100 Hz RGB imagery
• Published in IEEE Access 2025 (DOI: 10.1109/ACCESS.2025.3541200)

Specifications