A method including, based upon a desired path of a reference point from a start position to an end position, where the reference point is on an end effector on a robot arm, determine an included angle that corresponds to the start position and the end position, calculating a trajectory in radial coordinates of the reference point on the end effector at least partially based upon the included angles; calculating corresponding angular coordinates of the reference point on the end effector, based on the calculated radial coordinates, so that the reference point follows the desired path; using a modified formulation of inverse kinematics, converting the radial and angular coordinates supplemented with the included angles of the trajectory and corresponding angular velocity and acceleration of the end effector to form motion setpoints for the robot arm; and controlling the motors of the robot drive.

An apparatus including a robot drive having motors and coaxial drive shafts connected to the motors; and a robot arm connected to the robot drive. The robot arm includes two upper arms, a first set of forearms connected to a first one of the upper arms, a second set of forearms connected to a second one of the upper arms and end effectors connected to respective ones of the forearms. The first and second upper arms are connected to respective first and second ones of the coaxial drive shafts. The first set of the forearms is mounted on the first upper arm and connected to a third one of the coaxial drive shafts by respective first and second drive belt assemblies. The second set of the forearms is mounted to the second upper arm and connected to a fourth one of the coaxial drive shafts by respective third and fourth drive belt assemblies.

A robotic arm that extends in a longitudinal direction includes a pivot assembly that pivots a gripping portion around an axis that is substantially perpendicular to the robotic arm, in a direction transverse to the longitudinal direction of the robotic arm, and between at least a maximum-left position, a maximum-right position, and a centered position. The pivot assembly includes a first actuator that extends and retracts a first cable coupled to a left side of the gripping portion in order to pivot the gripping portion. The pivot assembly further includes a second actuator that extends and retracts a second cable coupled to a right side of the gripping portion in order to pivot the gripping portion.

Surgical tools having a two degree-of-freedom wrist, wrist articulation by linked tension members, mechanisms for transmitting torque through an angle, and minimally invasive surgical tools incorporating these features are disclosed. An elongate intermediate wrist member is pivotally coupled with a distal end of an instrument shaft so as to rotate about a first axis transverse to the shaft, and an end effector body is pivotally coupled with the intermediate member so as to rotate about a second axis that is transverse to the first axis. Linked tension members interact with attachment features to articulate the wrist. A torque-transmitting mechanism includes a coupling member, coupling pins, a drive shaft, and a driven shaft. The drive shaft is coupled with the driven shaft so as to control the relative orientations of the drive shaft, the coupling member, and the driven shaft.

The present invention relates to a joint assembly (1) for a robot (100), comprising a housing (26) connected with an output part (8), the housing comprising a housing wall (26A), a strain wave gearing system (90) comprising a wave generator (7), a flexspline (13), and a circular spline (36) connected to the output part (8), wherein the wave generator (7) is rotated by a rotor shaft (3), the rotor shaft being driven by an electric motor (140) comprising a stator (15) and a rotor magnet (16), the rotor magnet (16) being affixed to the rotor shaft (3), and wherein the joint assembly (1) further comprises a rotor brake (30) configured to stop/prevent relative movement between the rotor shaft (3) and the flexspline (13), and sensors arranged to measure the position of the housing (26) in relation to the output part (8). Furthermore, the present invention also relates to a robotic arm (100) comprising a joint assembly according to the present invention and to the use of the joint assembly according to the present invention.

A robot includes a robot controller that is designed and configured to execute a robot program, and a robot arm having at least three joints connected by links and a number of drives corresponding to the at least three joints. Each drive is designed to adjust one of the at least three joints allocated to the drive. The joints can be actuated in an automated manner in accordance with the robot program or in a manual drive mode by the robot controller to automatically adjust the associated joint, wherein at least one of the links includes a force measuring device designed to measure a force on the link in a predetermined direction.

A robot main body including a hollow flexible shaft having flexibility, a hollow bending joint including a proximal end continuous with a distal end of the flexible shaft, the bending joint being bendable in a direction perpendicular to an axis of the bending joint, a wrist joint continuous with a distal end of the bending joint and rotatable around an axis of the wrist joint, an end effector attached to the wrist joint, a hollow torque transmission tube having flexibility, inserted through the flexible shaft and the bending joint, and including a distal end attached to the wrist joint, and a bending joint operating cable inserted through the flexible shaft and including a distal end attached to the bending joint, the bending joint being configured to perform a bending operation by operating the bending joint operating cable in an extending direction of the bending joint operating cable.

Utilities (e.g., systems, apparatuses, methods) that reduce robotic assembly contention in media element storage libraries by rotating (e.g., flipping, swinging, etc.) a robot arm of a first robotic assembly mounted over a first of first and second spaced storage arrays in a storage library into a first position between the first storage array and a central reference plane disposed between and parallel to the first and second storage arrays to allow a robot arm of a second robotic assembly to slide or otherwise move past the robot arm of the first robotic assembly (e.g., in a direction along or parallel to an x-axis parallel to the first and second storage arrays), even when the robot arms of the first and second robotic assemblies are disposed at the same height (e.g., along a z-axis that is perpendicular to the x-axis) within the storage library.

Joint coupling links of robot arm to each other includes: plurality of plate-shaped segments lined up in plate thickness direction; and operating wires extending through plurality of segments in plate thickness direction. Groove extending in second direction and having partially circular cross section is provided at first-direction middle portion of main surface out of two main surfaces of adjacent segments, two main surfaces facing each other in plate thickness direction. Projection extending in second direction and having partially circular cross section is provided at first-direction middle portion of main surface. Curvature of projection is larger than curvature of groove. Projection is fitted in groove, and bottom portion of groove and top portion of projection contact each other. Dimension of projection in plate thickness direction is larger than dimension of groove in plate thickness direction and smaller than length of line connecting bottom portion of groove and edge portion of groove.

A robot arm comprising a joint mechanism for articulating one limb (310) of the arm relative to another limb (311) of the arm about two non-parallel rotation axes (20, 21), the mechanism comprising: an intermediate carrier (28) attached to a first one of the limbs by a first revolute joint having a first rotation axis and to a second one of the limbs by a second revolute joint having a second rotation axis; a first drive gear (33) disposed about the first rotation axis and fast with the carrier, whereby rotation of the carrier relative to the first limb about the first rotation axis can be driven; a second drive gear (37) disposed about the second rotation axis and fast with the second one of the limbs, whereby rotation of the second one of the limbs about the second rotation axis relative to the carrier can be driven; at least one of the first and second drive gears being a sector gear.