Soft medical robotics: clinical and biomedical applications,challenges, and future directions

Bioinspired soft robotics allow for safer clinical interactions with human patients but conventional, hard robots, which are often built with rigid materials and complex control systems, compromise tissue integrity, freedom of movement, conformability, and overall human bio-compatibility. Soft, compliant materials intrinsically reduce mechanical complexity, accommodate their usage environment, and provide great practical potential for medical device developments. Previous review papers have generally covered the topics of materials, manufacturing processes, actuator modeling and control, and current trends. Here, we focus on recent developments in soft robotic applications for the medical field including advances in cardiac devices, surgical robots, and soft rehabilitation and assistance devices. In medical applications, soft robotic devices not only expedite the evolution of minimally invasive surgery but also improve the bio-compatibility of rehabilitation and assistance devices. Here, we evaluate design requirements, mechanisms, achievements and challenges in these key areas. Of particular note, this paper concludes with a discussion on advances in 3D printing and adapting neural networks for modeling and control frameworks that have facilitated the development of faster and less expensive soft medical devices.     

Development and Control of Underwater Gliding Robots: A Review

As one of the most effective vehicles for ocean development and exploration, underwater gliding robots (UGRs) have the unique characteristics of low energy consumption and strong endurance. Moreover, by borrowing the motion principles of current underwater robots, a variety of novel UGRs have emerged with improving their maneuverability, concealment, and environmental friendliness, which significantly broadens the ocean applications. In this paper, we provide a comprehensive review of underwater gliding robots, including prototype design and their key technologies. From the perspective of motion characteristics, we categorize the underwater gliding robots in terms of traditional underwater gliders (UGs), hybrid-driven UGs, bio-inspired UGs, thermal UGs, and others. Correspondingly, their buoyancy driven system, dynamic and energy model, and motion control are concluded with detailed analysis. Finally, we have discussed the current critical issues and future development. This review offers valuable insight into the development of next-generation underwater robots well-suited for various oceanic applications, and aims to gain more attention of researchers and engineers to this growing field.      

面向北京2022年冬奥会水下火炬传递的新型机器人

面向北京2022年冬奥会水下火炬传递应用需求,设计水下变结构机器人和两栖机器人,并提出水下火炬传递控制方法。克服机械臂（含火炬）运动和野外流场的复合扰动是火炬传递控制的关键问题,尤其是手持燃烧火炬的机械臂对浮游模式水下机器人的影响更加显著。针对以上问题,本文提出一种基于自适应控制策略的水下火炬传递控制方法,在线辨识静力学和流场水动力参数,预先补偿控制扰动,实现水下机器人的高精度姿态控制、位置控制。最终,在北京2022年冬奥会上成功完成奥运史上首次机器人间水下火炬接力。     

康复辅助机器人及其物理人机交互方法

面对中国社会快速老龄化现状和庞大的残疾人群,康复辅助机器人研究具有重要学术价值和广阔的应用前景.康复辅助机器人研究涉及神经科学、生物力学、机器人自动控制等领域知识,是机器人最具挑战性和最受关注的研究领域之一.与其他机器人不同,康复辅助机器人的作用对象是人,存在人与机器人的信息交流和能量交换,物理人机交互控制方法是其研究核心和关键技术.本文以神经康复机器人、穿戴式外骨骼、智能假肢等应用为例,介绍当前的研究现状,并重点介绍人体运动意图识别方法和交互控制方法等研究重点和难点.最后展望该领域的未来技术发展方向.     

适于水下船体的爬壁机器人关键技术及其研究进展

水下船体表面清刷和检测为爬壁机器人开辟了新的应用领域,其特点是机械本体稳定地吸附在水下船体表面上,同时能够灵活地完成移动、转向、越障等行走功能,进而完成针对船体表面的检测、清刷等作业。文中重点介绍了几种水下船体作业的爬壁爬行机器人,并对机器人的吸附和行走两个关键技术进行了分析,总结了水下船体作业机器人研究中的一些难点问题及其发展趋势。     

Muscle circumference sensor and model reference-based adaptive impedance control for upper limb assist exoskeleton robot

In this paper, we have addressed two issues for upper limb assist exoskeleton: (1) estimation of human desired motion intention (DMI) using non-biological-based sensors; and (2) compliant control using model reference-based adaptive approach. For non-biological-based DMI estimation, we have employed Muscle Circumference Sensor (MCS) and load cells. MCS measures human elbow joint torque using human arm kinematics, biceps/triceps muscle model, and physiological cross-sectional area of these muscles. So, using MCS, we have measured Biceps/Triceps internal muscle activity and we have tried to reduce it by providing robotic assistance. To extract DMI, we have employed radial basis function neural network (RBFNN). RBFNN uses position, velocity, and human force to estimate DMI which is further tracked by the impedance control law. This algorithm is based on model reference-based adaptive impedance control law which drives the overall assist exoskeleton to the desired reference impedance model, giving required compliance. To highlight the effectiveness, we have compared proposed control algorithm with simple impedance and adaptive impedance control algorithms. Experimental results demonstrate the reduced muscle activity and active compliance for subject wearing the robot.     

Design and Control of Autonomous Underwater Robots: A Survey

During the 1990s, numerous worldwide research and development activities have occurred in underwater robotics, especially in the area of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs). As the ocean attracts great attention on environmental issues and resources as well as scientific and military tasks, the need for and use of underwater robotic systems has become more apparent. Great efforts have been made in developing AUVs to overcome challenging scientific and engineering problems caused by the unstructured and hazardous ocean environment. In the 1990s, about 30 new AUVs have been built worldwide. With the development of new materials, advanced computing and sensory technology, as well as theoretical advancements, R&D activities in the AUV community have increased. However, this is just the beginning for more advanced, yet practical and reliable AUVs. This paper surveys some key areas in current state-of-the-art underwater robotic technologies. It is by no means a complete survey but provides key references for future development. The new millennium will bring advancements in technology that will enable the development of more practical, reliable AUVs.     

Control of an exoskeleton robot arm with sliding mode exponential reaching law

Robots are now working not only in human environments but also interacting with humans, e.g., service robots or assistive robots. A 7DoFs robotic exoskeleton MARSE-7 (motion assistive robotic-exoskeleton for superior extremity) was developed as an assistive robot to provide movement assistance and/or ease daily upper-limb motion. In this paper, we highlight the nonlinear control of MARSE-7 using the modified sliding mode exponential reaching law (mSMERL). Conventional sliding control produces chattering which is undesired for this kind of robotic application as it causes damage to the mechanical structure. Compared to conventional sliding control, our approach significantly reduces chattering and delivers a high dynamic tracking performance. The control architecture was implemented on a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) in conjunction with a RT-PC. In experiments, trajectory tracking that corresponds to typical passive arm movement exercises for single and multi joint movements were performed to evaluate the performance of the developed robot and the controller. Experimental results demonstrate that the MARSE-7 can effectively track the desired trajectories.     

On the human perception of dissimilarities between postures of humanoids

This paper analyzes the perceived dissimilarity between postures of humanoid robots. First, the human perception of absolute distance between postures is focused. It is shown that results derived in computer graphics for human figures can be replicated with humanoids, despite the difference in body proportions and arrangement of the degrees of freedom. Successively, the perception of relative distances between postures is considered. It is shown that, paradoxically, better prediction of the distance between a pair of postures does not necessary lead to better predictions of which of multiple distances is the shortest. Finally, the paper concludes by briefly discussing possible implications of this finding to the fields of motion retrieval and motion blending.     

水下视觉环境感知方法与技术

有效感知水下环境是水下机器人自主运动与作业的关键。本文首先对水下视觉环境感知的共性问题进行分析,总结了视觉退化和折射畸变两大共性问题对水下视觉成像产生的影响。其次,围绕如何应对上述挑战,分别从水下视觉恢复方法、水下3维视觉感知以及水下视野增强方法3个方面对国内外主流的水下视觉环境感知方法的研究现状展开综述。最后,对水下视觉环境感知的未来发展趋势进行展望,重点包括集群化视觉感知、多模态感知信息融合、仿生视觉感知等热点研究方向。     

The CMUnited-98 champion small-robot team

Robotic soccer presents a large spectrum of challenging research opportunities. In this article, we present the main research and technical contributions of our champion CMUnited-98 small-robot team. The team is a multiagent robotic system with global perception, and distributed cognition and action. We introduce our new robot motion algorithm that reactively generates motion control to account for the target point, the desired robot orientation and obstacle avoidance. Our robots exhibit successful collision-free motion in the highly dynamic robotic soccer environment. At the strategic and decision-making level, we present the role-based behaviors of the CMUnited-98 robotic agents. Team collaboration is remarkably achieved through a new algorithm that allows for team agents to anticipate possible collaboration opportunities. Robots position themselves strategically in open positions that increase passing opportunities. The article terminates with a summary of the results of the RoboCup-98 games in which the CMUnited-98 small-robot team scored a total of 25 goals and suffered 6 goals in the five games that it played.     

Adaptive control of redundant multiple robots in cooperative motion

A redundant robot has more degrees of freedom than what is needed to uniquely position the robot end-effector. In practical applications the extra degrees of freedom increase the orientation and reach of the robot. Also the load carrying capacity of a single robot can be increased by cooperative manipulation of the load by two or more robots. In this paper, we develop an adaptive control scheme for kinematically redundant multiple robots in cooperative motion.In a usual robotic task, only the end-effector position trajectory is specified. The joint position trajectory will therefore be unknown for a redundant multi-robot system and it must be selected from a self-motion manifold for a specified end-effector or load motion. In this paper, it is shown that the adaptive control of cooperative multiple redundant robots can be addressed as a reference velocity tracking problem in the joint space. A stable adaptive velocity control law is derived. This controller ensures the bounded estimation of the unknown dynamic parameters of the robots and the load, the exponential convergence to zero of the velocity tracking errors, and the boundedness of the internal forces. The individual robot joint motions are shown to be stable by decomposing the joint coordinates into two variables, one which is homeomorphic to the load coordinates, the other to the coordinates of the self-motion manifold. The dynamics on the self-motion manifold are directly shown to be related to the concept of zero-dynamics. It is shown that if the reference joint trajectory is selected to optimize a certain type of objective functions, then stable dynamics on the self-motion manifold result. The overall stability of the joint positions is established from the stability of two cascaded dynamic systems involving the two decomposed coordinates.     

Effects of form and motion on judgments of social robots׳ animacy,likability, trustworthiness and unpleasantness

One of robot designers׳ main goals is to make robots as sociable as possible. Aside from improving robots׳ actual social functions, a great deal of effort is devoted to making them appear lifelike. This is often achieved by endowing the robot with an anthropomorphic body. However, psychological research on the perception of animacy suggests another crucial factor that might also contribute to attributions of animacy: movement characteristics. In the current study, we investigated how the combination of bodily appearance and movement characteristics of a robot can alter people׳s attributions of animacy, likability, trustworthiness, and unpleasantness. Participants played games of Tic-Tac-Toe against a robot which (1) either possessed a human form or did not, and (2) either exhibited smooth, lifelike movement or did not. Naturalistic motion was judged to be more animate than mechanical motion, but only when the robot resembled a human form. Naturalistic motion improved likeability regardless of the robot׳s appearance. Finally, a robot with a human form was rated as more disturbing when it moved naturalistically. Robot designers should be aware that movement characteristics play an important role in promoting robots׳ apparent animacy.     

双臂空间机器人协调操作运动控制仿真系统的设计与实现

阐述了双臂自由飞行空间机器人闭链式协调操作运动控制实验平台的建立方法。将VC 6.0、OpenGL、Matlab和Matcom四种软件融合起来,搭建FFSR(自由飞行空间机器人)系统实验平台;通过运动控制算法描述了机器人双臂协调操作目标物的动态特性,给出了机器人本体中心的位置姿态和转角的变化曲线,验证了该运动控制算法的正确性,以及编程效率的优越性。     

Integrated Premission Planning and Execution for Unmanned Ground Vehicles

Fielding robots in complex applications can stress the human operators responsible for supervising them, particularly because the operators might understand the applications but not the details of the robots. Our answer to this problem has been to insert agent technology between the operator and the robotic platforms. In this paper, we motivate the challenges in defining, developing, and deploying the agent technology that provides the glue in the application of tasking unmanned ground vehicles in a military setting. We describe how a particular suite of architectural components serves equally well to support the interactions between the operator, planning agents, and robotic agents, and how our approach allows autonomy during planning and execution of a mission to be allocated among the human and artificial agents. Our implementation and demonstrations (in real robots and simulations) of our multi-agent system shows significant promise for the integration of unmanned vehicles in military applications.     

Advancements in Humanoid Robots: A Comprehensive Review and Future Prospects

This paper provides a comprehensive review of the current status, advancements, and future prospects of humanoid robots, highlighting their significance in driving the evolution of next-generation industries. By analyzing various research endeavors and key technologies, encompassing ontology structure, control and decision-making, and perception and interaction, a holistic overview of the current state of humanoid robot research is presented. Furthermore, emerging challenges in the field are identified, emphasizing the necessity for a deeper understanding of biological motion mechanisms, improved structural design, enhanced material applications, advanced drive and control methods, and efficient energy utilization. The integration of bionics, brain-inspired intelligence, mechanics, and control is underscored as a promising direction for the development of advanced humanoid robotic systems. This paper serves as an invaluable resource, offering insightful guidance to researchers in the field, while contributing to the ongoing evolution and potential of humanoid robots across diverse domains.

     

下肢康复机器人及其交互控制方法

瘫痪病人的数量与日俱增,其康复训练通常是一个长期的过程.相对于传统的理疗,使用机器人辅助康复训练能够提高效率,降低成本,减少理疗师的人员和体力消耗,因此节省了康复医疗资源,并且可以完成更加多样的主被动训练策略,从而提高了康复效果.根据患者进行康复运动时的身体姿态,下肢康复机器人可分以下4类: 坐卧式机器人、直立式机器人、辅助起立式机器人和多体位式机器人,坐卧式又细分为末端式和外骨骼式,直立式进一步划分为悬吊减重(Suspending body weight support,sBWS) 式步态训练机器人和独立可穿戴式机器人.由于下肢康复机器人是与运动功能受损的患肢相互作用,为了给患者创造一个安全、舒适、自然的训练环境,机器人和患者之间的交互控制不可或缺.根据获取运动意图时所使用的传感器信号,交互控制可以基本分为两类: 1)基于力信号的交互控制; 2)基于生物医学信号的交互控制.在基于力信号的交互控制中,力位混合控制和阻抗控制是最为常用的两种方法; 而在基于生物医学信号的交互控制中,表面肌电 (Surface electromyogram,sEMG) 和脑电(Electroencephalogram,EEG) 最常被用于运动意图的推断.     

Moving Personal Robots in Real-Time Using Primitive Motions

Personal robotics is a new and attractive use of robotic technologies. In this paper we study one of its important topics—real-time motion planning of personal robots. We propose to use primitive motions and their combinations to make this possible. The primitive motion has a unified pattern and is borrowed from the motion pattern of human hands observed by previous researchers. The pattern is simple yet powerful and can form complex trajectories. A reflexive motion control scheme is proposed to activate appropriate primitive motions for a desired motion. As a result, real-time motion planning of personal robots becomes possible by using discrete and sparse human commands. Experiments results are presented to show the effectiveness of the proposed scheme.     

OTTER: The design and development of an intelligent underwater robot

Recent advances in sensing and intelligent control technologies open a whole new dimension in underwater autonomy. However, before truly-capable, autonomous underwater robots can be created for subsea intervention and exploration, many research issues must be first investigated and developed experimentally on testbed platforms.OTTER is an underwater robot designed to be used as a testbed for autonomous technologies. Both OTTER's hardware and software systems are configured to support simultaneous development and testing of different concepts for underwater robotic by independent researchers. A general control-software framework enables common access to all subsystems and avoids the duplication of basic robotic functionality jointly required by all projects. Additionally, the new autonomous technologies enabled by the results of individual research are mutually compatible and can be easily integrated into a single robotic system. Examples of new technologies demonstrated on the OTTER underwater robot include control from a real-time vision-sensing system, coordinated arm/vehicle control, and control from 3D graphical user interfaces.     

Introduction to the special issue on Advances in intelligent nonlinear control for robotic systems

In the last two decades, robotic systems have achieved wide applications in every aspect of human society, including industrial manufacturing, automotive production, medical devices, and social lives. With the