There is increasing realization that some tasks can be performed significantly better by humans than robots but, due to associated hazards, distance, etc., only a robot can be employed. Telemedicine is one area where remotely controlled robots can have a major impact by providing urgent care at remote sites. In recent years, remotely controlled robotics has been greatly advanced and the NASA Jo...

This paper presents the ideology of this research, which is to utilize advanced actuators to design and develop innovative, lightweight, powerful, compact, and dexterous robotic technology. The key to satisfying these objectives is the use of advanced or smart materials, such as Shape Memory Alloys (SMAs) to power the joints of a prosthetic hand, and other dexterous robotic hands. The mechanica...

The present paper investigates an intuitive way of robot path planning, called robot teaching by demonstration. In this method, an operator holds the robot end-effector and moves it through a number of positions and orientations in order to teach it a desired task. The presented control architecture applies impedance control in such a way that the end-effector follows the operator’s hand with d...

in this paper, according to high load capacity and rather large workspace characteristics of cable driven robots (cdrs), maximum dynamic load carrying capacity (dlcc) between two given end points in the workspace along with optimal trajectory is obtained. in order to find dlcc of cdrs, joint actuator torque and workspace of the robot constraints concerning to non-negative tension in cables are ...

Dexterous, within-hand manipulation, in which an object held in the fingertips is manipulated by the fingers, shares many similarities with parallel robots. However, their mathematical formulations appear to be substantially different. This paper introduces a formulation typical from parallel manipulators to model the kinetostatics of a handplus-object system, including thefingertip forces form...

RoboSimian is a quadruped robot inspired by an ape-like morphology, with four symmetric limbs that provide a large dexterous workspace and high torque output capabilities. Advantages of using RoboSimian for rough terrain locomotion include (1) its large, stable base of support, and (2) existence of redundant kinematic solutions, toward avoiding collisions with complex terrain obstacles. However...

In recent years numerous robot systems with multifingered grippers or hands have been developed all around the world. Many different approaches have been taken, anthropomorphic and non-anthropomorphic ones. Not only the mechanical structure of such systems was investigated, but also the necessary control system. With the human hand as an exemplar, such robot systems use their hands to grasp div...

This paper presents strategies for point-to-point reactionless manipulation of a satellite mounted dual-arm robotic system for capture of tumbling orbiting objects, such as out-ofcommission satellites and space debris. Use of the dual-arm robot could be more effective than the single arm when there is no provision for a grapple fixture or the object is tumbling. The dual arms can also provide d...

Dexterous tool use has been crucial in the evolution of hominid percussive technology. According to Newell, "dexterity" is the ability of an organism to make goal-directed corrections in movements to optimize effort. Dexterous movements are smooth and effective and accomplish the same goal with less energy than less dexterous movements. Dexterity develops during the later phases of refining a m...