Whole-body covering tactile interface for human robot coordination

In this paper, we propose a design method of wholebody tactile interface for elevating human-robot coordination. The proposed surface cover sensor as the tactile interface enables robots to detect accurate 3D force vector applied on various parts of the body during physical interaction with humans. First, after analysis of a variety of contact situations between humans and robots, tactile and force information needed are specified, and the specifications are decided based on knowledge of human engineering. Next, a design method of a cover sensor that can detect accurate force vector and contact position is described. The cover sensor utilizes a force-torque sensor and is surrounded with several touch sensors. The mechanism was implemented on a humanoid robot, WENDY. Finally, evaluation experiments of locus tracking on the surface and force-following to humans were carried out. The experimental results demonstrate the high capabilities of the proposed cover sensor as human-robot interface, and indicate that the proposed design method of whole-body tactile interface is capable of enhancing human-robot coordination.