Passive Actuation for Robotic Devices in Contact with Humans

人类和机器人需要在工厂、核设施、太空和医学中共同工作。 为了使互动本质上是安全的，本研究正在调查的概念控制被动机器人接口。 所研究的接口本质上是一个手臂，关节之间只有耗散（制动器或离合器）或保守（传输）耦合。 没有使用马达。 施加在手臂末端的力导致可以根据设备的目的进行计算机控制的运动：遵循规定的路径，限制对工作空间的某些区域的访问，或者提供表示虚拟或远程环境的性质的触觉显示。 实验和分析将产生人机交互的模型。 在先前资助下开发的实验测试台将得到加强，以支持目前的研究。 与此同时，一个更小规模的设备计划与触觉显示器的重点，使更广泛的探索范围的潜在应用的基本概念。 实验将在设备上进行，并与人类用户进行交互。 的 信息传输能力和弹道增强能力是有待实验研究并纳入相互作用模型的两个相关方面。 将进行理论研究，以预测不同控制器的预期性能界限。

Humans and robots have need to work together in factories, in nuclear facilities, in space and in medicine. To make the interaction inherently safe, this research is investigating the concept of controlled passive robotic interface. The interface under study is essentially an arm with only dissipative (brakes or clutches) or conservative (transmissions) coupling between joints. No motors are used. Forces applied at the end of the arm result in motion that can be computer controlled according to the purposes of the device: to follow a prescribed path, to restrict access to some regions of the workspace, or to provide a haptic display representing the nature of a virtual or remote environment. Experiment and analysis will produce a model of the human-machine interaction. An experimental test bed developed under prior funding will be enhanced to support the current research. At the same time a much smaller scale device is planned with a focus on haptic displays, enabling wider exploration of the range of potential applications of the basic concept. Experiments will be conducted on the device and on its interaction with a human user. The information transmission capability and the trajectory enhancement capability are two related aspects to be studied experimentally and incorporated into the model of interaction. Theoretical studies will be conducted to predict the bounds on the performance to be expected with different controllers.