A joint attachment system for a reconfigurable truss includes a first joint attachment having a first pivot axis and a second joint attachment having a second pivot axis. The first joint attachment and second joint attachment form a concentric spherical joint linkage when attached to a first body member and a second body member, respectively. The first pivot axis of the first joint attachment intersects the second pivot axis of the second joint attachment at a single point X which defines a center of the concentric spherical joint linkage. The concentric spherical joint linkage is configured to allow the addition of one or more joint attachments and body members to the truss node. In addition, the concentric spherical joint linkage is configured to allow the removal of one or more joint attachments and body members from the truss node.

A robotic device includes one or more actuators to position an end effector in a plurality of degrees of freedom. A navigation system tracks an actual position of the end effector. A controller identifies a condition wherein the actual position of the end effector contacts a virtual constraint. The controller determines that an anticipated movement of the end effector from an actual position to the home position would cause a collision between the end effector and a virtual constraint and computes a target position of the end effector that avoids the collision. The target position is spaced from the actual position and computed with respect to the virtual constraint. The one or more actuators are controlled to move the end effector from the actual position to target position along the virtual constraint.

A working device includes: a linear motion unit having three degrees of freedom and obtained by combining three linear motion actuators; and a rotary unit having three degrees of freedom and obtained by combining a plurality of rotating mechanisms each having one or more rotational degrees of freedom. The linear motion unit is mounted on a mount such that a base portion of the linear motion unit is fixed to the mount. A base portion of the rotary unit is fixedly mounted on an output portion of the linear motion unit. End effectors are mounted on both the output portion of the linear motion unit and an output portion of the rotary unit.

A substrate transport apparatus including; a frame, a substrate transport arm connected to the frame, the substrate transport arm having an end effector, and a drive section having at least one motor coupled to the substrate transport arm, wherein the at least one motor defines a kinematic portion of the drive section configured to effect kinematic motion of the substrate transport arm, and the drive section includes an accessory portion adjacent the kinematic portion, wherein the accessory portion has another motor, different and distinct from the at least one motor, the another motor of the accessory portion is operably coupled to and configured to drive one or more accessory device independent of the kinematic motion of the substrate transport arm.

A capacitive sensor for characterizing force or torque includes a first plurality of non-patterned conductive regions and a first plurality of patterned conductive regions, and a second plurality of non-patterned conductive regions and a second plurality of patterned conductive regions. The first and second pluralities of non-patterned conductive regions are facing and the first and second pluralities of patterned conductive regions are facing.

One embodiment can provide an intelligent robotic system. The intelligent robotic system can include at least one multi-axis robotic arm, at least one gripper attached to the multi-axis robotic arm for picking up a component, a machine vision system comprising at least a three-dimensional (3D) surfacing-imaging module for detecting 3D pose information associated with the component, and a control module configured to control movements of the multi-axis robotic arm and the gripper based on the detected 3D pose of the component.

A joint assembly for a guiding device comprises a plurality of guiding elements that are concentrically aligned with respect to one another and at least sectionally spherically shaped. The guiding elements are arranged as components of a combined spherical bearing and comprise spherical contact areas. At least two of the guiding elements are integrally manufactured. The at least two guiding elements enable a relative pivot movement therebetween. A guiding device for an instrument incorporates a respective joint assembly. A method of manufacturing a joint assembly involves integrally manufacturing at least to guiding elements that form components of a combined spherical bearing. Uses of a joint assembly involve a use as a spherical bearing in an instrument holder for a simulation system or an assistance system for minimally invasive operations.

A robotic apparatus includes a neck housing and a head housing. The head housing defines a sagittal axis, a frontal axis, and a vertical axis. A drive assembly is disposed at least partially within the neck housing and the head housing. The drive assembly is configured to move the head housing relative to the neck housing independently about the sagittal axis, the frontal axis, and the vertical axis such that the head housing has a range of motion that substantially corresponds to a human or animal head. The drive assembly includes a sagittal axle extending along the sagittal axis, a frontal axle rotatable about the frontal axis, and a vertical axle rotatable about the vertical axis. The vertical axle is disposed at least partially within the neck housing and offset from both the sagittal axle and the frontal axle along the vertical axis.

A 3-axis parallel linear robot has three drivers disposed around a central axis and a movement mechanism. The movement mechanism has three linkage assemblies connected to an end effector in parallel. The three assemblies are respectively driven by the three drivers in a linear or rotary manner for enabling the end effector to linearly move in a three-dimensional space. Each linkage assembly has three linkage rods and three rotating joints. An inner angle defined between each rotating joint and an imaginary plane being perpendicular to the central axis is an acute angle. A first center distance between the first rotating joint and the second rotating joint is equal to a second center distance between the second rotating joint and the third rotating joint. The overall height of the movement mechanism is reduced for increasing the working stroke and for improving the movement stability of the 3-axis parallel linear robot.

Disclosed is a robot joint device comprising first and second plates positioned in parallel with each other, links each having a first end connected to the first plate and a second end connected to the second plate, connecting members configured to connect the two ends of each of the links and the first and second plates, respectively, so that angles and rotations of the links are adjustable relative to the first and second plates, a rotary shaft having two ends penetrating the first and second plates and rotatably installed, a gear reduction unit installed in the first plate and connected to the first end of the rotary shaft, a pulley connected to the second end of the rotary shaft and configured to transmit driving power to the rotary shaft, and a drive unit configured to transmit the driving power to the pulley.