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Space robots are one of the most promising solutions for on-orbit servicing (OOS) duties like docking, berthing, refueling, re-pairing, upgrading, transporting, rescuing, and orbital trash disposal. Numerous enabling techniques and technological demonstration missions have been developed and completed over the past two decades. There have been several successful manned on-orbit service missions, but unmanned service missions have not yet been conducted. Robotic maintenance continues to be an important area of investigation with numerous technical challenges. This report outlines the design and initial testing of Torveastro, an astronaut service robot. The specifications are provided concurrently with the design and simulation. In comparison with the simulation results, preliminary tests demonstrated promising behavior for future development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a numerical and experimental validation of ExoFing, a two-degrees-of-freedom finger mechanism exoskeleton. The main functionalities of this device are investigated by focusing on its kinematic model and by computing its main operation characteristics via numerical simulations. Experimental tests are designed and carried out for validating both the engineering feasibility and effectiveness of the ExoFing system aiming at achieving a human index finger motion assistance with cost-oriented and user-friendly features. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Space robots are one of the most promising solutions for on-orbit servicing (OOS) duties like docking, berthing, refueling, re-pairing, upgrading, transporting, rescuing, and orbital trash disposal. Numerous enabling techniques and technological demonstration missions have been developed and completed over the past two decades. There have been several successful manned on-orbit service missions, but unmanned service missions have not yet been conducted. Robotic maintenance continues to be an important area of investigation with numerous technical challenges. This report outlines the design and initial testing of Torveastro, an astronaut service robot. The specifications are provided concurrently with the design and simulation. In comparison with the simulation results, preliminary tests demonstrated promising behavior for future development.

Activity in Cultural Heritage frames aims to have a good monitoring of unknown cultural heritage also in an inaccessible site decreasing the cost of interventions. There are several robotics systems available both as rovers and drones. They are suited for inspection tasks in risky environments or for surveillance purposes provided of several sensors able to detect and monitor the area under examination, sometimes they can be also equipped with an end-effector for manipulation tasks or to collect objects. This paper introduces HeritageBot III (HBIII), a service robot for Cultural Heritage frames, which consists in a robotic platform with a modular design for both ground locomotion and flight capability. The proposed design is able to merge the advantages of drone and legged mobile robots in an innovative platform, able to navigate in most unknown environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

TORVEastro robot design is presented with a built prototype in LARM2 (Laboratory of Robot Mechatronics) for testing and characterizing its functionality for service in space stations. Several robot astronauts are designed with bulky human-like structures that cannot be convenient for outdoor space service in monitoring and maintenance of the external structures of orbital stations. The design features of TORVEastro robot are discussed with its peculiar mechanical design with 3 arm-legs as agile service robot astronaut. A lab prototype is used to test the operation performance and the feasibility of its peculiar design. The robot weighs 1 kg, and consists of a central torso, three identical three-degree of freedom (DoF) arm–legs and one vision system. Test results are reported to discuss the operation efficiency in terms of motion characteristics and power consumption during lab experiments that nevertheless show the feasibility of the robot for outdoor space applications.

Locomotion over different terrain types, whether flat or uneven, is very important for a wide range of service operations in robotics. Potential applications range from surveillance, rescue, or hospital assistance. Wheeled-legged hexapod robots have been designed to solve these locomotion tasks. Given the wide range of feasible operations, one of the key operation planning issues is related to the robot balancing during motion tasks. Usually this problem is related with the pose of the robot’s center of mass, which can be addressed using different mathematical techniques. This paper proposes a new practical technique for balancing wheeled-legged hexapod robots, where a Biodex Balance System model SD (for static & dynamic) is used to obtain the effective position of the center of mass, thus it can be recalculated to its optimal position. Experimental tests are carried out to evaluate the effectiveness of this technique and modify and improve the position of hexapod robots’ center of mass.

An artificial torso is a fundamental part of a humanoid robot for imitating human actions. In this paper, a prototype of CAUTO (CAssino hUmanoid TOrso) is presented. Its design is characterized by artificial vertebras actuated by cable-driven parallel manipulators. The design was conceived by looking at the complex system and functioning of the human torso, in order to develop a solution for basic human-like behavior. The requirements and kinematic structure are introduced to explain the peculiarities of the proposed mechanical design. A prototype is presented, and built with low-cost and high-performance features. Tests results are reported to show the feasibility and the characteristics in replicating human torso motions. In addition, the power consumption has been measured during the tests to prove the efficiency of the Li-Po battery supply, employed for a fully portable solution of the designed torso.

We present a model-free experimental method to find a control strategy for achieving stable flight of a dual-actuator biologically inspired flapping-wing flying microrobot during hovering. The main idea proposed in this work is the sequential tuning of parameters for an increasingly more complex strategy in order to sequentially accomplish more complex tasks: upright stable flight, straight vertical flight, and stable hovering with altitude and position control. Each term of the resulting multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) controller has a physical intuitive meaning and the control structure is relatively simple such that it could potentially be applied to other kinds of flapping-wing robots. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes an experimental procedure consisting of impact tests that simulate a collision of a human head with an industrial robot with the aim to validate a safety index named as New Index for Robots (NIR) and its outputs. The experiments in this paper are based on lab tests. It is an attempt to characterize the NIR index underlying the main parameters that are involved in crash interaction and to highlight limitations and weakness of suggested impact tests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents results on the modelling, simulation and experimental tests of a cable-based parallel manipulator to be used as an aiding or guiding system for people with motion disabilities. There is a high level of motivation for people with a motion disability or the elderly to perform basic daily-living activities independently. Therefore, it is of great interest to design and implement safe and reliable motion assisting and guiding devices that are able to help end-users. In general, a robot for a medical application should be able to interact with a patient in safety conditions, i.e. it must not damage people or surroundings; it must be designed to guarantee high accuracy and low acceleration during the operation. Furthermore, it should not be too bulky and it should exert limited wrenches after close interaction with people. It can be advisable to have a portable system which can be easily brought into and assembled in a hospital or a domestic environment. Cable-based robotic structures can fulfil those requirements because of their main characteristics that make them light and intrinsically safe. In this paper, a reconfigurable four-cable-based parallel manipulator has been proposed as a motion assisting and guiding device to help people to accomplish a number of tasks, such as an aiding or guiding system to move the upper and lower limbs or the whole body. Modelling and simulation are presented in the ADAMS environment. Moreover, experimental tests are reported as based on an available laboratory prototype. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, an application is presented of a cable-based parallel manipulator as measuring system for an experimental identification of human walking characteristics. Experimental results have been obtained by means of a new version of CaTraSys (Cassino Tracking System), which is a measuring system that has been designed and built at Laboratory of Robotics and Mechatronics (LARM) in Cassino, Italy. The new version of the CaTraSys system has been used to determine the trajectory of the human limb extremity during walking operation and furthermore the system is able to measure forces that are exerted by a limb. Experimental determination of articulation mobility is also presented with numerical and experimental results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In this study, a path-planning method that has been developed for serial manipulators is adapted to cable-driven robots. The proposed method has two modes. The first one is active when the robot is far from an obstacle. In this mode, the robot moves toward the goal on a straight line. The second mode is active when the robot is near an obstacle. During this mode, the robot finds the best way to avoid the obstacle. Moreover, an algorithm is presented to detect the collision between the robot and the obstacle. A similar algorithm is also presented to avoid the collision of the cables with an obstacle. Some simulation results are shown, which are then validated experimentally using a built 4-cable-driven parallel manipulator. Although the path obtained between the initial and final poses may not be the shortest possible one, it guarantees finding a path, when it exists, no matter how cluttered the environment is. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

We consider the task of controlling a large team of non-holonomic ground robots with an unmanned aerial vehicle in a decentralized manner that is invariant to the number of ground robots. The central idea is the development of an abstraction for the team of ground robots that allows the aerial platform to control the team without any knowledge of the specificity of individual vehicles. This happens in much the same way as a human operator can control a single robot vehicle by simply commanding the forward and turning velocities without a detailed knowledge of the specifics of the robot. The abstraction includes a gross model of the shape of the formation of the team, and information about the position and orientation of the team in the plane. We derive controllers that allow the team of robots to move in formation while avoiding collisions and respecting the abstraction commanded by the aerial platform. We propose strategies for controlling the physical spread of the ensemble of robots by splitting and merging the team based on distributed techniques. We provide simulation and experimental results using a team of indoor mobile robots and a three-dimensional, cable-controlled, parallel robot which serves as our indoor unmanned aerial platform. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper a 4-4 cable-based system is presented for an application of aiding elderly people or patients with disabilities at lower limbs, in standing up and sitting operations. Cable-based manipulators have very good kinematic and dynamic characteristics, and they also show other properties such as good transportability and low-cost construction, which make them also suitable for medical applications and rehabilitation. The proposed application is analyzed through a kinetostatic analysis and simulation of the manipulator. An experimental validation of the proposed application is presented by means of an existent prototype, which is called CALOWI (CAssino LOw-cost WIre robot) that is available at LARM in Cassino. A low-cost system for tension monitoring has been used to monitor the forces in the cables during the experimental tests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, cable-based manipulators are proposed for application in rehabilitation therapies. Cable-based manipulators show good features that are very useful when the system has to interact with humans. In particular, they can be used to aid motion or as monitoring/training systems in rehabilitation therapies. Modelling and simulation of both active and passive cable-based parallel manipulators are presented for an application to help older people, patients or disabled people in the sit-to-stand transfer and as a monitoring/training system. Experimental results are presented by using built prototypes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors report on the approach to the design of a large-scale multirobot system for the experimental confirmation and validation of various distributed robotic applications in an indoor environment. It focuses on the decentralized mulitrobot algorithms that rely on an integrated approach to perception, communication, and mobility. The authors also discuss experimental testbeds by describing the hardware, software, and infrastructure for experimentation including the principles for design choices. They noted that testbeds enable the validation of distributed robotics algorithms for large numbers of robots engaged in a variety of tasks. These tasks include search and pursuit of targets, formation control, and cooperative manipulation.

The feasibility and efficiency of a finger mechanism in the LARM Hand have been verified through experimental tests in terms of both operation performance and design characteristics. In this paper, we have reported how to carry out an experimental evaluation of mobility and stiffness characteristics of the finger mechanism in the LARM Hand. Results of laboratory tests show the soundness of the testing procedure and feasibility of the finger mechanism design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A characterization of singularities for a six-wire parallel architecture is presented as a result of numerical and experimental analyses. Numerical analysis has been developed through geometrical and analytical considerations. The study is based on a classification that has been derived on the basis of the geometry of tetrahedra, and singular configurations have been classified as a function of the tetrahedron volume. Experimental characterization has been carried out by considering the wire parallel architecture Cassino tracking system (CATRASYS). Experimental results are reported to characterize the performance of the CATRASYS chain in different operating conditions as an illustrative practical example. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper a formulation and experimental results are presented for a novel application of a 3-degree of freedom (DOF) parallel manipulator to simulate point seismograms and three-dimensional (3-D) earthquake motion. The rigid body acceleration is analyzed to simulate real 3-D earthquakes. Furthermore, first experimental results are reported to analyze earthquake effects on scaled civil structures. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

TORVEastro robot design is presented with a built prototype in LARM2 (Laboratory of Robot Mechatronics) for testing and characterizing its functionality for service in space stations. Several robot astronauts are designed with bulky human-like structures that cannot be convenient for outdoor space service in monitoring and maintenance of the external structures of orbital stations. The design features of TORVEastro robot are discussed with its peculiar mechanical design with 3 arm-legs as agile service robot astronaut. A lab prototype is used to test the operation performance and the feasibility of its peculiar design. The robot weighs 1 kg, and consists of a central torso, three identical three-degree of freedom (DoF) arm–legs and one vision system. Test results are reported to discuss the operation efficiency in terms of motion characteristics and power consumption during lab experiments that nevertheless show the feasibility of the robot for outdoor space applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Locomotion over different terrain types, whether flat or uneven, is very important for a wide range of service operations in robotics. Potential applications range from surveillance, rescue, or hospital assistance. Wheeled-legged hexapod robots have been designed to solve these locomotion tasks. Given the wide range of feasible operations, one of the key operation planning issues is related to the robot balancing during motion tasks. Usually this problem is related with the pose of the robot's center of mass, which can be addressed using different mathematical techniques. This paper proposes a new practical technique for balancing wheeled-legged hexapod robots, where a Biodex Balance System model SD (for static & dynamic) is used to obtain the effective position of the center of mass, thus it can be recalculated to its optimal position. Experimental tests are carried out to evaluate the effectiveness of this technique and modify and improve the position of hexapod robots' center of mass. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A service robot for Cultural Heritage frames is proposed as a novel robotic platform with a modular design for both ground locomotion and flight capability. The peculiarities of the system are discussed by performance evaluation via simulation. A prototype has been built and tested both to prove the feasibility of the proposed design and to characterize its operation performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]