Discretizing SO(2)-Equivariant Features for Robotic Kitting

Robotic kitting has attracted considerable attention in logistics and industrial settings. However, existing kitting methods encounter challenges such as low precision and poor efficiency, limiting their widespread applications. To address these issues, we present a novel kitting framework that improves both the precision and computational efficiency of complex kitting tasks. Firstly, our approach introduces a fine-grained orientation estimation technique in the picking module, significantly enhancing orientation precision while effectively decoupling computational load from orientation granularity. This approach combines an SO(2)-equivariant network with a group discretization operation to preciously predict discrete orientation distributions. Secondly, we develop the Hand-tool Kitting Dataset (HKD) to evaluate the performance of different solutions in handling orientation-sensitive kitting tasks. This dataset comprises a diverse collection of hand tools and synthetically created kits, which reflects the complexities encountered in real-world kitting scenarios. Finally, a series of experiments are conducted to evaluate the performance of the proposed method. The results demonstrate that our approach offers remarkable precision and enhanced computational efficiency in robotic kitting tasks.

Theoretical Model Construction of Deformation-Force for Soft Grippers Part I: Co-rotational Modeling and Force Control for Design Optimization

Compliant grippers, owing to adaptivity and safety, have attracted considerable attention for unstructured grasping in real applications, such as industrial or logistic scenarios. However, accurate construction of the mathematical model depicting the bidirectional relationship between shape deformation and contact force for such grippers, such as the Fin-Ray grippers, remains stagnant to date. To address this research gap, this article devises, presents, and experimentally validates a universal bidirectional force-displacement mathematical model for compliant grippers based on the co-rotational concept, which endows such grippers with an intrinsic force sensing capability and offers a better insight into the design optimization. In Part 1 of the article, we introduce the fundamental theory of the co-rotational approach, where arbitrary large deformation of beam elements can be modeled. Its intrinsic principle enables the theoretical modeling to consider various types of configurations and key design parameters with very few assumptions made. Further, a force control algorithm is proposed, providing accurate displacement estimations of the gripper under external forces with minor computational loads. The performance of the proposed method is experimentally verified through comparison with Finite Element Analysis, where the influence of four key design parameters on the gripper s performance is investigated, facilitating systematical design optimization. Part 2 of this article demonstrating the force sensing capabilities and the effects of representative co-rotational modeling parameters on model accuracy is released in Google Drive.

Theoretical Model Construction of Deformation-Force for Soft Grippers Part II: Displacement Control Based Intrinsic Force Sensing

Compliant grasping is an essential capability for most robots in practical applications. For compliant robotic end-effectors that commonly appear in industrial or logistic scenarios, such as Fin-Ray gripper, it still remains challenging to build a bidirectional mathematical model that mutually maps the shape deformation and contact force. Part I of this article has constructed the force-displacement relationship for design optimization through the co-rotational theory with very few assumptions. In Part II, we further devise a detailed displacement-force mathematical model, enabling the compliant gripper to precisely estimate contact force sensor-free. Specifically, the proposed approach based on the co-rotational theory can calculate contact forces from deformations. The presented displacement-control algorithm elaborately investigates contact forces and provides force feedback for a force control system of a gripper, where deformation appears as displacements in contact points. Afterward, simulation experiments are conducted to evaluate the performance of the proposed model through comparisons with the finite-element analysis (FEA). Simulation results reveal that the proposed model accurately estimates contact force, with an average error of around 5% throughout all single/multiple node cases, regardless of various design parameters (Part I of this article is released in Google Drive).

Enabling Massage Actions: An Interactive Parallel Robot with Compliant Joints

We propose a parallel massage robot with compliant joints based on the series elastic actuator (SEA), offering a unified force-position control approach. First, the kinematic and static force models are established for obtaining the corresponding control variables. Then, a novel force-position control strategy is proposed to separately control the force-position along the normal direction of the surface and another two-direction displacement, without the requirement of a robotic dynamics model. To evaluate its performance, we implement a series of robotic massage experiments. The results demonstrate that the proposed massage manipulator can successfully achieve desired forces and motion patterns of massage tasks, arriving at a high-score user experience.

Enabling Grasp Action: Generalized Evaluation of Grasp Stability via Contact Stiffness from Contact Mechanics Insight

Performing a grasp is a pivotal capability for a robotic gripper. We propose a new evaluation approach of grasping stability via constructing a model of grasping stiffness based on the theory of contact mechanics. First, the mathematical models are built to explore soft contact and the general grasp stiffness between a finger and an object. Next, the grasping stiffness matrix is constructed to reflect the normal, tangential and torsion stiffness coefficients. Finally, we design two grasping cases to verify the proposed measurement criterion of grasping stability by comparing different grasping configurations. Specifically, a standard grasping index is used and compared with the minimum eigenvalue index of the constructed grasping stiffness we built. The comparison result reveals a similar tendency between them for measuring the grasping stability and thus, validates the proposed approach.