In this paper we describe a control methodology for

catching a fast moving object with a robot manipulator,

where visual information is employed to track the

trajectory of the target. Sensing, planning and control

are performed in real-time to cope with possible

unpredictable trajectory changes of the moving target,

and prediction techniques are adopted to compensate the

time delays introduced by visual processing and by the

robot controller. A simple but reliable model of the

robot controller has been taken into account in the

control architecture for improving the performance of the

system. Experimental results have shown that the robot

system is capable of tracking and catching an object

moving on a plane at velocities of up to 700 mm/s and

accelerations of up to 1500 mm/s2.