Study and development of sensorimotor interfaces for robotic human augmentation

This thesis presents my research contribution to robotics and haptics in the context of human augmentation. In particular, in this document, we are interested in bodily or sensorimotor augmentation, thus the augmentation of humans by supernumerary robotic limbs (SRL). The field of sensorimotor augmentation is new in robotics and thanks to the combination with neuroscience, great leaps forward have already been made in the past 10 years. All of the research work I produced during my Ph.D. focused on the development and study of fundamental technology for human augmentation by robotics: the sensorimotor interface. This new concept is born to indicate a wearable device which has two main purposes, the first is to extract the input generated by the movement of the user's body, and the second to provide the somatosensory system of the user with an haptic feedback. This thesis starts with an exploratory study of integration between robotic and haptic devices, intending to combine state-of-the-art devices. This allowed us to realize that we still need to understand how to improve the interface that will allow us to feel the agency when using an augmentative robot. At this point, the path of this thesis forks into two alternative ways that have been adopted to improve the interaction between the human and the robot. In this regard, the first path we presented tackles two aspects conerning the haptic feedback of sensorimotor interfaces, which are the choice of the positioning and the effectiveness of the discrete haptic feedback. In the second way we attempted to lighten a supernumerary finger, focusing on the agility of use and the lightness of the device. One of the main findings of this thesis is that haptic feedback is considered to be helpful by stroke patients, but this does not mitigate the fact that the cumbersomeness of the devices is a deterrent to their use. Preliminary results here presented show that both the path we chose to improve sensorimotor augmentation worked: the presence of the haptic feedback improves the performance of sensorimotor interfaces, the co-positioning of haptic feedback and the input taken from the human body can improve the effectiveness of these interfaces, and creating a lightweight version of a SRL is a viable solution for recovering the grasping function

Sensors for Robotic Hands: A Survey of State of the Art

Recent decades have seen significant progress in the field of artificial hands. Most of the surveys, which try to capture the latest developments in this field, focused on actuation and control systems of these devices. In this paper, our goal is to provide a comprehensive survey of the sensors for artificial hands. In order to present the evolution of the field, we cover five year periods starting at the turn of the millennium. At each period, we present the robot hands with a focus on their sensor systems dividing them into categories, such as prosthetics, research devices, and industrial end-effectors.We also cover the sensors developed for robot hand usage in each era. Finally, the period between 2010 and 2015 introduces the reader to the state of the art and also hints to the future directions in the sensor development for artificial hands

Haptics: Science, Technology, Applications

This open access book constitutes the proceedings of the 12th International Conference on Human Haptic Sensing and Touch Enabled Computer Applications, EuroHaptics 2020, held in Leiden, The Netherlands, in September 2020. The 60 papers presented in this volume were carefully reviewed and selected from 111 submissions. The were organized in topical sections on haptic science, haptic technology, and haptic applications. This year's focus is on accessibility

Haptics: Science, Technology, Applications

This open access book constitutes the proceedings of the 12th International Conference on Human Haptic Sensing and Touch Enabled Computer Applications, EuroHaptics 2020, held in Leiden, The Netherlands, in September 2020. The 60 papers presented in this volume were carefully reviewed and selected from 111 submissions. The were organized in topical sections on haptic science, haptic technology, and haptic applications. This year's focus is on accessibility

Haptic Media Scenes

The aim of this thesis is to apply new media phenomenological and enactive embodied cognition approaches to explain the role of haptic sensitivity and communication in personal computer environments for productivity. Prior theory has given little attention to the role of haptic senses in influencing cognitive processes, and do not frame the richness of haptic communication in interaction design—as haptic interactivity in HCI has historically tended to be designed and analyzed from a perspective on communication as transmissions, sending and receiving haptic signals. The haptic sense may not only mediate contact confirmation and affirmation, but also rich semiotic and affective messages—yet this is a strong contrast between this inherent ability of haptic perception, and current day support for such haptic communication interfaces. I therefore ask: How do the haptic senses (touch and proprioception) impact our cognitive faculty when mediated through digital and sensor technologies? How may these insights be employed in interface design to facilitate rich haptic communication? To answer these questions, I use theoretical close readings that embrace two research fields, new media phenomenology and enactive embodied cognition. The theoretical discussion is supported by neuroscientific evidence, and tested empirically through case studies centered on digital art. I use these insights to develop the concept of the haptic figura, an analytical tool to frame the communicative qualities of haptic media. The concept gauges rich machine- mediated haptic interactivity and communication in systems with a material solution supporting active haptic perception, and the mediation of semiotic and affective messages that are understood and felt. As such the concept may function as a design tool for developers, but also for media critics evaluating haptic media. The tool is used to frame a discussion on opportunities and shortcomings of haptic interfaces for productivity, differentiating between media systems for the hand and the full body. The significance of this investigation is demonstrating that haptic communication is an underutilized element in personal computer environments for productivity and providing an analytical framework for a more nuanced understanding of haptic communication as enabling the mediation of a range of semiotic and affective messages, beyond notification and confirmation interactivity

Robotic Home-Based Rehabilitation Systems Design: From a Literature Review to a Conceptual Framework for Community-Based Remote Therapy During COVID-19 Pandemic

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the higher susceptibility of post-stroke patients to infection calls for extra safety precautions. Despite the imposed restrictions, early neurorehabilitation cannot be postponed due to its paramount importance for improving motor and functional recovery chances. Utilizing accessible state-of-the-art technologies, home-based rehabilitation devices are proposed as a sustainable solution in the current crisis. In this paper, a comprehensive review on developed home-based rehabilitation technologies of the last 10 years (2011–2020), categorizing them into upper and lower limb devices and considering both commercialized and state-of-the-art realms. Mechatronic, control, and software aspects of the system are discussed to provide a classified roadmap for home-based systems development. Subsequently, a conceptual framework on the development of smart and intelligent community-based home rehabilitation systems based on novel mechatronic technologies is proposed. In this framework, each rehabilitation device acts as an agent in the network, using the internet of things (IoT) technologies, which facilitates learning from the recorded data of the other agents, as well as the tele-supervision of the treatment by an expert. The presented design paradigm based on the above-mentioned leading technologies could lead to the development of promising home rehabilitation systems, which encourage stroke survivors to engage in under-supervised or unsupervised therapeutic activities

Robotics 2010

Without a doubt, robotics has made an incredible progress over the last decades. The vision of developing, designing and creating technical systems that help humans to achieve hard and complex tasks, has intelligently led to an incredible variety of solutions. There are barely technical fields that could exhibit more interdisciplinary interconnections like robotics. This fact is generated by highly complex challenges imposed by robotic systems, especially the requirement on intelligent and autonomous operation. This book tries to give an insight into the evolutionary process that takes place in robotics. It provides articles covering a wide range of this exciting area. The progress of technical challenges and concepts may illuminate the relationship between developments that seem to be completely different at first sight. The robotics remains an exciting scientific and engineering field. The community looks optimistically ahead and also looks forward for the future challenges and new development

Establishing a Framework for the development of Multimodal Virtual Reality Interfaces with Applicability in Education and Clinical Practice

The development of Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) content with multiple sources of both input and output has led to countless contributions in a great many number of fields, among which medicine and education. Nevertheless, the actual process of integrating the existing VR/AR media and subsequently setting it to purpose is yet a highly scattered and esoteric undertaking. Moreover, seldom do the architectures that derive from such ventures comprise haptic feedback in their implementation, which in turn deprives users from relying on one of the paramount aspects of human interaction, their sense of touch. Determined to circumvent these issues, the present dissertation proposes a centralized albeit modularized framework that thus enables the conception of multimodal VR/AR applications in a novel and straightforward manner. In order to accomplish this, the aforesaid framework makes use of a stereoscopic VR Head Mounted Display (HMD) from Oculus Rift©, a hand tracking controller from Leap Motion©, a custom-made VR mount that allows for the assemblage of the two preceding peripherals and a wearable device of our own design. The latter is a glove that encompasses two core modules in its innings, one that is able to convey haptic feedback to its wearer and another that deals with the non-intrusive acquisition, processing and registering of his/her Electrocardiogram (ECG), Electromyogram (EMG) and Electrodermal Activity (EDA). The software elements of the aforementioned features were all interfaced through Unity3D©, a powerful game engine whose popularity in academic and scientific endeavors is evermore increasing. Upon completion of our system, it was time to substantiate our initial claim with thoroughly developed experiences that would attest to its worth. With this premise in mind, we devised a comprehensive repository of interfaces, amid which three merit special consideration: Brain Connectivity Leap (BCL), Ode to Passive Haptic Learning (PHL) and a Surgical Simulator

NASA space station automation: AI-based technology review

Research and Development projects in automation for the Space Station are discussed. Artificial Intelligence (AI) based automation technologies are planned to enhance crew safety through reduced need for EVA, increase crew productivity through the reduction of routine operations, increase space station autonomy, and augment space station capability through the use of teleoperation and robotics. AI technology will also be developed for the servicing of satellites at the Space Station, system monitoring and diagnosis, space manufacturing, and the assembly of large space structures