{"ID":2867071,"CreatedAt":"2026-06-01T04:54:23.091178241Z","UpdatedAt":"2026-06-01T04:54:23.091178241Z","DeletedAt":null,"paper_url":"https://arxiv.org/abs/2509.18865","arxiv_id":"2509.18865","title":"Bi-VLA: Bilateral Control-Based Imitation Learning via Vision-Language Fusion for Action Generation","abstract":"We propose Bilateral Control-Based Imitation Learning via Vision-Language Fusion for Action Generation (Bi-VLA), a novel framework that extends bilateral control-based imitation learning to handle more than one task within a single model. Conventional bilateral control methods exploit joint angle, velocity, torque, and vision for precise manipulation but require task-specific models, limiting their generality. Bi-VLA overcomes this limitation by utilizing robot joint angle, velocity, and torque data from leader-follower bilateral control with visual features and natural language instructions through SigLIP and FiLM-based fusion. We validated Bi-VLA on two task types: one requiring supplementary language cues and another distinguishable solely by vision. Real-robot experiments showed that Bi-VLA successfully interprets vision-language combinations and improves task success rates compared to conventional bilateral control-based imitation learning. Our Bi-VLA addresses the single-task limitation of prior bilateral approaches and provides empirical evidence that combining vision and language significantly enhances versatility. Experimental results validate the effectiveness of Bi-VLA in real-world tasks. For additional material, please visit the website: https://mertcookimg.github.io/bi-vla/","short_abstract":"We propose Bilateral Control-Based Imitation Learning via Vision-Language Fusion for Action Generation (Bi-VLA), a novel framework that extends bilateral control-based imitation learning to handle more than one task within a single model. Conventional bilateral control methods exploit joint angle, velocity, torque, and...","url_abs":"https://arxiv.org/abs/2509.18865","url_pdf":"https://arxiv.org/pdf/2509.18865v1","authors":"[\"Masato Kobayashi\",\"Thanpimon Buamanee\"]","published":"2025-09-23T10:02:16Z","proceeding":"cs.RO","tasks":"[\"cs.RO\",\"cs.LG\"]","methods":"[]","has_code":false}