362 research outputs found
Effects of haptic feedback in dual-task teleoperation of a mobile robot
Teleoperation system usage is challenging to human operators, as this system has a predominantly visual interface that limits the ability to acquire situation awareness, (e.g. maintain a safe teleoperation). This limitation coupled with the dual-task problem of teleoperating a mobile robot, negatively affects the operators cognitive load and motor skills. Our motivation is to offload some of the visual information to a secondary perceptual channel (haptic), by proposing an assisted teleoperation system. This system uses haptic feedback to alert the operator of obstacle proximity, without directly influencing the operator’s command inputs. The objective of this paper, is to evaluate and validate the efficacy of our system’s haptic feedback, by providing the obstacle proximity information to the operator. The user experiment was conducted to emulate the dual-task problem, by having a concurrent task for cognitive distraction. Our results showed significant differences in time to complete the navigation task and the duration of collisions, between the haptic feedback condition and the control condition.info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio
Generating Humanoid Multi-Contact through Feasibility Visualization
We present a feasibility-driven teleoperation framework designed to generate
humanoid multi-contact maneuvers for use in unstructured environments. Our
framework is designed for motions with arbitrary contact modes and postures.
The operator configures a pre-execution preview robot through contact points
and kinematic tasks. A fast estimation of the preview robot's quasi-static
feasibility is performed by checking contact stability and collisions along an
interpolated trajectory. A visualization of Center of Mass (CoM) stability
margin, based on friction and actuation constraints, is displayed and can be
previewed if the operator chooses to add or remove contacts. Contact points can
be placed anywhere on a mesh approximation of the robot surface, enabling
motions with knee or forearm contacts. We demonstrate our approach in
simulation and hardware on a NASA Valkyrie humanoid, focusing on multi-contact
trajectories which are challenging to generate autonomously or through
alternative teleoperation approaches
Reducing the Barrier to Entry of Complex Robotic Software: a MoveIt! Case Study
Developing robot agnostic software frameworks involves synthesizing the
disparate fields of robotic theory and software engineering while
simultaneously accounting for a large variability in hardware designs and
control paradigms. As the capabilities of robotic software frameworks increase,
the setup difficulty and learning curve for new users also increase. If the
entry barriers for configuring and using the software on robots is too high,
even the most powerful of frameworks are useless. A growing need exists in
robotic software engineering to aid users in getting started with, and
customizing, the software framework as necessary for particular robotic
applications. In this paper a case study is presented for the best practices
found for lowering the barrier of entry in the MoveIt! framework, an
open-source tool for mobile manipulation in ROS, that allows users to 1)
quickly get basic motion planning functionality with minimal initial setup, 2)
automate its configuration and optimization, and 3) easily customize its
components. A graphical interface that assists the user in configuring MoveIt!
is the cornerstone of our approach, coupled with the use of an existing
standardized robot model for input, automatically generated robot-specific
configuration files, and a plugin-based architecture for extensibility. These
best practices are summarized into a set of barrier to entry design principles
applicable to other robotic software. The approaches for lowering the entry
barrier are evaluated by usage statistics, a user survey, and compared against
our design objectives for their effectiveness to users
PoinTap system: a human-robot interface to enable remotely controlled tasks
In the last decades, industrial manipulators have been used to speed up the production process and also to perform tasks that may put humans at risk. Typical interfaces employed to teleoperate the robot are not so intuitive to use. In fact, it takes longer to learn and properly control a robot whose interface is not easy to use, and it may also increase the operator’s stress and mental workload. In this paper, a touchscreen interface for supervised assembly tasks is proposed, using an LCD screen and a hand-tracking sensor. The aim is to provide an intuitive remote controlled system that enables a flexible execution of assembly tasks: high level decisions are entrusted to the human operator while the robot executes pick-and-place operations. A demonstrative industrial case study showcases the system potentiality: it was first tested in simulation, and then experimentally validated
using a real robot, in a laboratory environment
GENERIC MIDI DEVICES AS NEW INPUT FOR SPECIALIZED SOFTWARE
There are plenty of sublime devices, including input devices, for all kinds of specialists working with computers available on the market. Furthermore, the more specific solutions are needed, the more expensive and complicated they are. At the time when many people prefer to try as many things as possible before selecting the specific learning paths, both high price and high entry threshold, can appear as blockers.
In the paper, there are selected some hardware and software solutions for facilitating the work of the professionals , who expect more analog-like interfaces and more natural ways to control computers presented. Additionally, the authors describe original software and hardware solution that allows the use of wide range MIDI devices as custom input devices. The concept of the software made is being presented, as well as some results of initial interaction of different kind of professionals and the proposed solution software and hardware
Body-Borne Computers as Extensions of Self
The opportunities for wearable technologies go well beyond always-available information displays or health sensing devices. The concept of the cyborg introduced by Clynes and Kline, along with works in various fields of research and the arts, offers a vision of what technology integrated with the body can offer. This paper identifies different categories of research aimed at augmenting humans. The paper specifically focuses on three areas of augmentation of the human body and its sensorimotor capabilities: physical morphology, skin display, and somatosensory extension. We discuss how such digital extensions relate to the malleable nature of our self-image. We argue that body-borne devices are no longer simply functional apparatus, but offer a direct interplay with the mind. Finally, we also showcase some of our own projects in this area and shed light on future challenges
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