Mechanical and Control Design of an Industrial Exoskeleton for Advanced Human Empowering in Heavy Parts Manipulation Tasks

Abstract

Exoskeleton robots are a rising technology in industrial contexts to assist humans in onerous applications. Mechanical and control design solutions are intensively investigated to achieve a high performance human-robot collaboration (e.g., transparency, ergonomics, safety, etc.). However, the most of the investigated solutions involve high-cost hardware, complex design solutions and standard actuation. In the presented work, an industrial exoskeleton for lifting and transportation of heavy parts is proposed. A low-cost mechanical design solution is proposed, exploiting compliant actuation at the shoulder joint to increase safety and transparency in human-robot cooperation. A hierarchic model-based controller is then proposed (including the modeling of the compliant actuator) to actively assist the human while executing the task. An inner optimal controller is proposed for trajectory tracking, while an outer fuzzy logic controller is proposed to online deform the task trajectory on the basis of the human’s intention of motion. A gain scheduler is also designed to calculate the optimal control gains on the basis of the performed trajectory. Simulations have been performed in order to validate the performance of the proposed device, showing promising results. The prototype is under realization.

Technical Methods for Social Robots in Museum Settings: An Overview of the Literature

“…Many researchers and roboticists believe we can use this technology in public spaces to assist people [1,2]. Different sectors are affected by the employment of social robotics, such as restaurants [3][4][5], shopping malls [6], healthcare [7,8], exoskeletons [9] and collaborative robots [10,11]. Each sector deals with general issues we may encounter when developing robotic services for humans.…”

“…One of the main issues remains the safety of users, considering how developers need to design their robots to accomplish their tasks while remaining safe. For example, this includes making the machine aware of human motions and gestures not to disrupt their activity or collide with them [11], supporting the user's work, and contributing to their health, e.g., helping them to avoid lifting heavy objects [9,11] or manipulating dangerous products [10]. When designing robots for human-robot collaboration or interaction, safety is not the only consideration.…”