A rotary-type series elastic actuator (SEA) for use in robotic applications. The SEA including a motor, gear transmission assembly, spring assembly, and sensors. In one example, a robotic joint may include the SEA as well as two links coupled with each other at the joint assembly. The two links may be designated as input and output links. Each link may have a joint housing body which may be concentrically connected via a joint bearing so that they freely rotate against each other. The housing frame of the SEA may be fixed at the joint housing body of the input link while the output mount of the spring assembly of the SEA may be concentrically coupled with the joint housing body of the output link. The rotation of the motor rotor causes the rotation of the output link with respect to the input link plus spring deflection of the spring assembly. When an external force or torque are applied between the two links, a control action of a control loop may cause a rotation and motive force of the motor that lead to the deflection of the spring assembly to balance with the external force/torque and inertial force from body masses moving together with the links.

A robot controller includes a storage unit that stores load information including a mass and a center of gravity position of a load to be attached to a robot; a lead-through control unit that controls the robot comprising a sensor that detects an external force, based on the external force detected by the sensor and the load information stored in the storage unit; and a load suitability determining unit that determines whether or not the load information stored in the storage unit is suitable. In response to the load suitability determining unit determining that the load information has a possibility of being unsuitable, the lead-through control unit performs a restriction on a movement of the robot.

A work transfer system includes a robot having a hand which holds a workpiece and a sensor which can detect external force acting on the hand, a balancer connected to the hand and can generate lifting force for lifting the hand in a vertically upward direction, a shape measuring device which conducts measuring of a shape of the workpiece, and a controller controlling the robot and the balancer based on the shape of the workpiece, and the controller adjusts a holding position of the workpiece by the hand based on the shape, and controls the lifting force so that an absolute value of the external force in the vertical direction detected by the sensor becomes equal to or smaller than a predetermined first threshold when the workpiece is held at the adjusted holding position and lifted.

The disclosure provides a dynamic interaction-oriented subject's limb time-varying stiffness identification method and device. The method includes: the combination of subject's limb displacement and measured force data or the combination of angle and measured torque data is collected; based on the time-varying dynamic system constructed based on a second-order impedance model, the linear parameter varying method is utilized to substitute the time-varying impedance parameters and reconstruct the restoring force/torque expression; iterative identification is performed on variable weights, dynamic interaction force/torque, and restoring force/torque by using time-varying dynamic parameters based on the dynamic interaction force/torque expression expanded from basis function; the time-varying stiffness is solved by using variable weights and dynamic interaction force/torque according to expression with substituted the time-varying impedance parameters. The disclosure not only improves the accuracy of the time-varying stiffness identification technology but also expands the application scenarios of the time-varying stiffness identification technology.

A robotic system for presenting a payload within a workspace includes a pair of serial robots configured to connect to the payload, a parallel robot coupled to a distal end of one of the serial robots such that the parallel robot is disposed between the distal end and the payload, a sensor situated within a kinematic chain extending between the distal end and the payload, and a robot control system (RCS). The sensor outputs a sensor signal indicative of a measured property of the payload. The RCS includes a coordinated motion controller configured to control the serial robots, and a corrective motion controller configured to control the parallel robot. Parallel robot control occurs in response to the sensor signal concurrently with control of the serial robots in order to thereby modify the property of the payload in real-time.

A medical device has been disclosed. The medical device includes a parallel manipulator. The parallel manipulator having an end platform coupled to a surgical tool and a base platform coupled to machine module. The machine module is coupled to the surgical tool through a transmission shaft disposed between the end platform and the base platform.

Provided is a program generation device capable of automatically generating a route program which takes into account the amount of bending when the tip of a robot abuts against a workpiece. This program generation device is provided with: an acquisition unit that acquires route data indicating a route to be followed by the tip of the robot with respect to an object; a detection unit that detects a pressing force for pressing the tip of the robot to the object; a calculation unit that calculates the amount of misalignment of the followed route caused by bending of the tip of the robot, on the basis of the pressing force detected by the detection unit and a prescribed constant; and a generation unit that automatically generates a route program for controlling a moving route of the tip of the robot, on the basis of the route data acquired by the acquisition unit and the amount of misalignment calculated by the calculation unit.

An actuator unit (1) includes a direct drive motor (2), a first magnetic gear (3) connected to a rotating shaft (6) of the direct drive motor (2), a second magnetic gear (4) configured to be magnetically engaged with the first magnetic gear (3), and a planetary reducer (5) connected to a rotating shaft of the second magnetic gear (4).

One embodiment can provide an apparatus. The apparatus can include a robotic arm, a pair of jaws coupled to the robotic arm configured to grip a fabric piece at a pair of predetermined locations, a force sensor coupled to the jaws and configured to measure a tension force applied to the fabric piece by the jaws, and a control module configured to control movements of at least one jaw based on the measured tension force, thereby allowing the fabric piece to be stretched.

Methods and systems for joint execution of complex tasks by a human and a robotic system are described herein. In one aspect, a collaborative robotic system includes a payload platform having a loading surface configured to carry a payload shared with a human collaborator. The collaborative robotic system navigates a crowded environment, while sharing a payload with the human collaborator. In another aspect, the collaborative robotic system measures forces in a plane parallel to the loading surface of the payload platform to infer navigational cues from the human collaborator. In some instances, the collaborative robotic system overrides the navigational cues of the human collaborator to avoid collisions between an object in the environment and any of the robotic system, the human collaborator, and the shared payload.