The proposed research is to develop a new actuation methodology well suited for the emerging generation of robots conceived to operate in human environments, and to conduct a comprehensive experimental study of validation and evaluation of the distributed macro mini actuation (DM2) methodology from the point of views of safety and performance. The methodology of DM2 addresses both the safety and performance characteristic of a robot. The DM2 approach employs a pair of actuators, connected in parallel and distributed to the different joints of the robot. The effective inertia of the overall robot is substantially reduced by isolating the reflected inertia ofthe actuator while greatly reducing the overall weight of the manipulator. Performance is maintained with small actuators collocated with the joints. The key novelty in this approach lies in an actuation synthesis that introduces, in addition to the conventional analysis of continuous torque magnitude needs, the actual requirements in actuator frequency responses in robot control. Of particular interest is the analysis of impact forces in a three dimensional collision between a robot and its surroundings. Two safety standard measures will be used to quantify the improvement in safety in terms of reduction of impact force. In addition, the robot performance characteristics will be evaluated against traditional low-impedance design.
The effort proposed in this project has the potential to greatly contribute to accelerating the research and technology development in various aspects and application areas of human-friendly robotics. Such applications include robotic prosthetic and assistive devices, as well as traditional areas of robotic assembly and automation. This area can be expanded to environments and tasks, which require close human-robot interaction, greatly increasing the range of manufacturing and assembly tasks available for robotic augmentation. Finally, complex systems, such as human-like robotic systems, will require inherent safety to be acceptable to the public at large. The research activities and much of the underlying analysis and concept validation in this project will provide an important training and development opportunities to graduate students and during the summer quarter to undergraduate students as part of university sponsored summer research programs. Educational and outreach opportunities are provided through the Stanford Robotics Laboratory. The research results and hardware demonstrations are presented as part of formal course work at Stanford as well as part of the Laboratory outreach efforts to alumni, industry, and secondary school organizations.
