Three-dimensional tactile sensor with thin and soft elastic body

When a humanoid robot hand generates a dexterous motion or adaptive behavior, a three-dimensional tactile sensor is indispensable which is as thin and soft as human skin. This study proposed a three-dimensional tactile sensor which enables to use a thin and soft elastic body without requiring any such processing as drawing of pattern on the surface or injection of pigment, etc., in the belief that this would enable to produce a wide dynamic range and a high resolution. We manufactured an optical type pressure sensor capable of irradiating a light in parallel to an elastic body, in such a way that the contour line may indicate the shape of the object material and, with the position of incidence of this light as clue, estimating the ldquocontact position of the object material,rdquo ldquomagnitude of the force,rdquo and ldquoangle of incidence of the force.rdquo The estimation experiment showed that the output of the tactile sensor exhibits the same accuracy as that of a conventional ldquohard and heavyrdquo sensor.