Control Systems Design for Stable Telerobotic and Haptic Interactions

遥控机器人和触觉模拟系统使人类能够通过与被称为触觉设备的致动手持机构进行交互来将其感测和操纵能力缩放和投射到远程、危险或虚拟世界。随着快速计算和先进的电信系统的出现，协作触觉已经作为一种可行的技术而出现，通过该技术，两个或多个用户远程交互或协作以执行共同或复杂的任务。这些系统的新兴应用是在远程外科手术（da芬奇外科手术系统）、远程康复、远程维护和细胞的远程微镊子化中。这种系统的广泛使用的基本挑战在于设计控制器，其在用户动态和通常未知环境的不确定性以及数据处理和传输的延迟中保持接触稳定性并传达真实的操纵感。在控制回路中涉及人类用户响应的组件和系统级别的整体方法将有助于显着改善稳定性和性能之间的权衡。拟议的研究计划，重点是协作触觉，将开发核心技术，包括新的控制算法，模拟触觉驱动的电子硬件和有效的分析工具，这将为新应用的开发铺平道路，并广泛采用触觉技术。预计拟议研究的影响将在经济和技术领域的医疗保健、制造业、建筑业、能源和军事等各个行业感受到。该计划将提供机电一体化，触觉，控制，生物力学，生物信号处理和编程的独特和多样化的培训机会，七名研究生在一个设备齐全的协作环境。

Telerobotic and haptic simulation systems enable humans to scale and project their sensing and manipulation capabilities to remote, dangerous or virtual worlds, by means of interfacing with an actuated hand-held mechanism, known as a haptic device. With the advent of fast computing and advanced telecommunication systems, collaborative haptics has transpired as a viable technology by which two or more users interact or collaborate remotely to perform a common or complex task. Emerging applications of these systems are in tele-surgery (da Vinci Surgical System), tele-rehabilitation, tele-maintenance, and tele-microtweezing of cells.A fundamental challenge for a widespread use of such systems reside in designing controllers that maintain contact stability and convey a true sense of manipulation amid uncertainties in the dynamics of users and often unknown environments, and the delays in data processing and transmission. A holistic approach both at the component and system levels that involves the human user response in the control loop will lend to a significantly improved trade-off between stability and performance. The proposed research program, with a focus on collaborative haptics, will develop core technologies, including novel control algorithms, electronic hardware for analog haptic actuation, and efficient analytical tools, that will pave the way for the development of new applications, and a widespread adoption of haptic technology by industry. The impact of the proposed research is expected to be felt through various industries including healthcare, manufacturing, construction, energy and military at both the economic and technological fronts. The program will offer unique and diverse training opportunities in mechatronics, haptics, controls, biomechanics, biosignal processing and programming to seven graduate students in a well-equipped collaborative environment.