Multi-fingered robotic hand

A robotic hand is presented having a plurality of fingers, each having a plurality of joints pivotally connected one to the other. Actuators are connected at one end to an actuating and control mechanism mounted remotely from the hand and at the other end to the joints of the fingers for manipulating the fingers and passing externally of the robot manipulating arm in between the hand and the actuating and control mechanism. The fingers include pulleys to route the actuators within the fingers. Cable tension sensing structure mounted on a portion of the hand are disclosed, as is covering of the tip of each finger with a resilient and pliable friction enhancing surface

Learning to Represent Haptic Feedback for Partially-Observable Tasks

The sense of touch, being the earliest sensory system to develop in a human body [1], plays a critical part of our daily interaction with the environment. In order to successfully complete a task, many manipulation interactions require incorporating haptic feedback. However, manually designing a feedback mechanism can be extremely challenging. In this work, we consider manipulation tasks that need to incorporate tactile sensor feedback in order to modify a provided nominal plan. To incorporate partial observation, we present a new framework that models the task as a partially observable Markov decision process (POMDP) and learns an appropriate representation of haptic feedback which can serve as the state for a POMDP model. The model, that is parametrized by deep recurrent neural networks, utilizes variational Bayes methods to optimize the approximate posterior. Finally, we build on deep Q-learning to be able to select the optimal action in each state without access to a simulator. We test our model on a PR2 robot for multiple tasks of turning a knob until it clicks.Comment: IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA), 201

Application of Charge Detection to Dynamic Contact Sensing

The manipulation contact forces convey substantial information about the manipulation state. This paper address the fundamental problem of interpreting the force signals without any additional manipulation context. Techniques based on forms of the generalized sequential likelihood ratio test are used to segment individual strain signals into statistically equivalent pieces. We report on our experimental development of the segmentation algorithm and on its results for contact states. The sequential likelihood ratio test is reviewed and some of its special cases and optimal properties are discussed. Finally, we conclude by discussing extensions to the techniques and a contact interpretation framework

Cranial osteology of the ankylosaurian dinosaur formerly known as Minmi sp (Ornithischia: Thyreophora) from the Lower Cretaceous Allaru Mudstone of Richmond, Queensland, Australia

Minmi is the only known genus of ankylosaurian dinosaur from Australia. Seven specimens are known, all from the Lower Cretaceous of Queensland. Only two of these have been described in any detail: the holotype specimenMinmi paravertebra fromthe Bungil Formation near Roma, and a near complete skeleton fromthe Allaru Mudstone onMarathon Station near Richmond, preliminarily referred to a possible new species of Minmi. The Marathon specimen represents one of the world's most complete ankylosaurian skeletons and the best-preserved dinosaurian fossil from eastern Gondwana. Moreover, among ankylosaurians, its skull is one of only a few in which the majority of sutures have not been obliterated by dermal ossifications or surface remodelling. Recent preparation of theMarathon specimen has revealed new details of the palate and narial regions, permitting a comprehensive description and thus providing new insights cranial osteology of a basal ankylosaurian. The skull has also undergone computed tomography, digital segmentation and 3D computer visualisation enabling the reconstruction of its nasal cavity and endocranium. The airways of the Marathon specimen are more complicated than non-ankylosaurian dinosaurs but less so than derived ankylosaurians. The cranial (brain) endocast is superficially similar to those of other ankylosaurians but is strongly divergent in many important respects. The inner ear is extremely large and unlike that of any dinosaur yet known. Based on a high number of diagnostic differences between the skull of theMarathon specimen and other ankylosaurians, we consider it prudent to assign this specimen to a new genus and species of ankylosaurian. Kunbarrasaurus ieversi gen. et sp. nov. represents the second genus of ankylosaurian from Australia and is characterised by an unusual melange of both primitive and derived characters, shedding new light on the evolution of the ankylosaurian skull

Toward a better understanding of fish‐based contribution to ocean carbon flux

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Validating Metrics for a Mastoidectomy Simulator

Abstract. One of the primary barriers to the acceptance of surgical simulators is that most simulators still require a significant amount of an instructing surgeon's time to evaluate and provide feedback to the students using them. Thus, an important area of research in this field is the development of metrics that can enable a simulator to be an essentially self-contained teaching tool, capable of identifying and explaining the user's weaknesses. However, it is essential that these metrics be validated in able to ensure that the evaluations provided by the "virtual instructor" match those that the real instructor would provide were he/she present. We have previously proposed a number of algorithms for providing automated feedback in the context of a mastoidectomy simulator. In this paper, we present the results of a user study in which we attempted to establish construct validity (with inter-rater reliability) for our simulator itself and to validate our metrics. Fifteen subjects (8 experts, 7 novices) were asked to perform two virtual mastoidectomies. Each virtual procedure was recorded, and two experienced instructing surgeons assigned global scores that were correlated with subjects' experience levels. We then validated our metrics by correlating the scores generated by our algorithms with the instructors' global ratings, as well as with metric-specific sub-scores assigned by one of the instructors

Mutuality as a method: advancing a social paradigm for global mental health through mutual learning

Purpose: Calls for “mutuality” in global mental health (GMH) aim to produce knowledge more equitably across epistemic and power differences. With funding, convening, and publishing power still concentrated in institutions in the global North, efforts to decolonize GMH emphasize the need for mutual learning instead of unidirectional knowledge transfers. This article reflects on mutuality as a concept and practice that engenders sustainable relations, conceptual innovation, and queries how epistemic power can be shared. // Methods: We draw on insights from an online mutual learning process over 8 months between 39 community-based and academic collaborators working in 24 countries. They came together to advance the shift towards a social paradigm in GMH. // Results: Our theorization of mutuality emphasizes that the processes and outcomes of knowledge production are inextricable. Mutual learning required an open-ended, iterative, and slower paced process that prioritized trust and remained responsive to all collaborators’ needs and critiques. This resulted in a social paradigm that calls for GMH to (1) move from a deficit to a strength-based view of community mental health, (2) include local and experiential knowledge in scaling processes, (3) direct funding to community organizations, and (4) challenge concepts, such as trauma and resilience, through the lens of lived experience of communities in the global South. // Conclusion: Under the current institutional arrangements in GMH, mutuality can only be imperfectly achieved. We present key ingredients of our partial success at mutual learning and conclude that challenging existing structural constraints is crucial to prevent a tokenistic use of the concept