A technique for actuating a robotic apparatus is disclosed. In one particular embodiment, the technique may be realized as an apparatus for providing controlled movement of a robotic appendage, comprising a digit, wherein the digit comprises a first joint and a second joint, and an actuator configured to control a degree of freedom of the digit. The actuator causes the first joint to bend at a first rate from a first position to a second position and the second joint to bend at a second rate from a third position to a fourth position. The first rate is faster than the second rate.

A robot control device includes the following: a main control unit; a servo control unit, which receives a position command θc from the main control unit; and a bending correction block (24), which corrects the bending of the reduction gear connected to the servo motor. The bending correction block (24) includes the following: a first position-correction-value calculation means (63), which finds a first position-command correction value θsgc based on the position command θc; and a second position-command-correction-value calculation means (64), which finds a second position-command correction value θskc based on the interference torque τa. The servo control unit drives the servo motor based on a new position command obtained by adding the first position-command correction value θsgc and the second position-command correction value θskc to the position command θc.

A robotic arm system comprising an artificial intelligence (AI) processor system, a transceiver electrically coupled to the AI processor system, and a robotic arm having an optical data communication network that communicates with the transceiver. The robotic arm further comprises a transmitter, a plurality of sensors electrically coupled to the transmitter, a receiver, and a plurality of motion actuators electrically coupled to the receiver. The optical data communication network comprises gigabit plastic optical fiber (GbPOF) having a graded-index core made of a transparent carbon-hydrogen bond-free perfluorinated polymer with dopant. In one embodiment, one GbPOF optically couples the transmitter to the transceiver and another GbPOF optically couples the transceiver to the receiver. The flexible high-data-rate GbPOF enables robotic arm control using artificial intelligence.

An operation control device for a robot comprises: an input part inputting at least one operation candidate, and a captured image including an object to be processed; a first learning device that has finished learning performed according to first learning data to output a first evaluation value indicating evaluation of each operation candidate when the robot performs a first processing operation upon input of the captured image and the operation candidate; a second learning device that has finished learning performed according to second learning data which differs from the first learning data, to output a second evaluation value indicating evaluation of each operation candidate when the robot performs a second processing operation upon input of the captured image and the operation candidate; and an evaluation part that, based on at least one of the first evaluation value and the second evaluation value, calculates a command value.

In a wire-driven continuum robot, in accordance with a profile of a first bending angle regarding a bending angle of a follow-up bending section that corresponds to a forward movement of a continuum robot, and is set in accordance with an input first target bending angle of a distal bending section, a bending angle of the following-up bending section is controlled to reach the first target bending angle. Before a movement amount of a forward movement reaches a first movement amount, the control is performed as follows. More specifically, a profile of a second bending angle that is different from the profile of the first bending angle is set, and by a further forward movement of the continuum robot, a bending angle of the following-up bending section reaches the second target bending angle in accordance with the profile of the second bending angle.

A method is provided for vibration suppression, which is useful in systems with configuration dependent dynamic parameters. The method is a general and practical solution for obtaining a set of inputs to a dynamic system, which will result in reduced vibrational behavior. A novel discrete time buffer implementation is employed, which yields reduced vibration due to a constant unity sum of applied impulses. The method includes shaping a position input with a continuously updated filter and using numerical differentiation to obtain consistent feedforward derivatives without phase shift.

A training data generation device includes a virtual scene generation unit, an orthographic virtual camera, an object-occlusion determination unit, an object-occlusion determination unit and a perspective virtual camera. The virtual scene generation unit is configured for generating a virtual scene, wherein the virtual scene comprises a plurality of objects. The orthographic virtual camera is configured for capturing a vertical projection image of the virtual scene. The object-occlusion determination unit is configured for labeling an occluded-state of each object according to the vertical projection image. The perspective virtual camera is configured for capturing a perspective projection image of the virtual scene. The training data generation unit is configured for generating a training data of the virtual scene according to the perspective projection image and the occluded-state of each object.

A self-contained truck-mounted brick laying machine can include a frame that can support packs or pallets of bricks placed on a platform. A transfer robot can pick up and move the brick(s). A carousel can be coaxial with a tower. The carousel can transfer the brick(s) via the tower to an articulated and/or telescoping boom. The bricks can be moved along the boom by, e.g., linearly moving shuttles, to reach a brick laying and adhesive applying head. The brick laying and adhesive applying head can mount to an element of the stick, about an axis which is disposed horizontally. The poise of the brick laying and adhesive applying head about the axis can be adjusted and can be set in use so that the base of a clevis of the robotic arm mounts about a horizontal axis, and the tracker component is disposed uppermost on the brick laying and adhesive applying head. The brick laying and adhesive applying head can apply adhesive to the brick and can have a robot that lays the brick. Vision and laser scanning and tracking systems can be provided to allow the measurement of as-built slabs, bricks, the monitoring and adjustment of the process and the monitoring of safety zones. The first, or any course of bricks can have the bricks pre machined by the router module so that the top of the course is level once laid.

A robot controller for controlling a robot arm comprising: —a first space shaping module configured to provide a shaped first space target motion by convolving a first space target motion with an impulse train, where the first space target motion defines a target motion in a first reference space; —a second space shaping module configured to provide a shaped second space target motion by convolving a second target motion with the impulse train; where the second target motion defines the target motion in a second reference space; and —a motor controller module configured to generate motor control signals to the joint motors based on the shaped first space target motion and the shaped second space target motion. This makes it possible to dynamically adjust in which reference space the input shaping shall be performed whereby vibrations and deviation in one reference space caused by input shaping in another reference space can be reduced.

A picking device includes: a workpiece holder in which a plurality of workpieces is stacked; a light receiver that receives reflected light from a workpiece stacked in the workpiece holder; a mover that relatively moves the light receiver with respect to the workpiece in such a manner that a distance between the light receiver and the workpiece is adjustable; an arm that picks the workpiece; a first hardware processor that calculates a distance between the light receiver and at least one workpiece among the plurality of workpieces; a second hardware processor that specifies a workpiece as a picking target among the plurality of workpieces or a region where the workpiece exists; and a third hardware processor that adjusts a distance between the light receiver and the workpiece calculated by the first hardware processor by controlling the mover in the region specified by the second hardware processor.