Robot Pushing: Motion Cone & Limit Surface (2D)

Not every robot manipulation task needs a grasp. A single flat pusher sliding a box across a table is enough to demonstrate quasi-static non-prehensile manipulation: the box's translation and rotation are governed by the ellipsoidal limit-surface approximation, and the pusher's own Coulomb friction cone caps which push directions can actually be transmitted before the contact slips. This top-down 2D view lets you drag the contact point along the edge and drag the push direction directly, watching the friction-cone-derived motion cone redraw live at the contact and the predicted twist — and the instantaneous center of rotation — respond exactly as the underlying quasi-static model dictates.