Newsgroups: comp.robotics
Path: cantaloupe.srv.cs.cmu.edu!das-news2.harvard.edu!news2.near.net!howland.reston.ans.net!pipex!uknet!comlab.ox.ac.uk!paul
From: paul@robots.ox.ac.uk (Paul Elosegui)
Subject: Re: Active and Mechanical/Passive Compliance in Robotics
Message-ID: <1994Nov5.114204.22933@duncan.robots.ox.ac.uk>
Originator: paul@duncan.robots
Organization: Robotics Research Group, Engineering Science Dept, Oxford, UK.
References: <PIERO.94Oct20113808@griffon.nakano.me.tohoku.ac.jp> <ACC.94Oct26114106@dibble.cee.hw.ac.uk> <38rogb$n8q@killerbee.jsc.nasa.gov>
Date: Sat, 5 Nov 1994 11:42:04 GMT
Lines: 57

In article <38rogb$n8q@killerbee.jsc.nasa.gov> schipper@mohawk.jsc.nasa.gov writes:
>In <ACC.94Oct26114106@dibble.cee.hw.ac.uk>, acc@dibble.cee.hw.ac.uk (Andrew Clegg) writes:
>>In article <PIERO.94Oct20113808@griffon.nakano.me.tohoku.ac.jp> piero@nakano.me.tohoku.ac.jp (Piero Velletri) writes:
>>
>>> One of my main objectives is to come up with some sort of simple
>>> mechanical compliance device that can be applied to robot
>>> manipulators.  The motivation for this research comes from the fact
>>> that active compliance control is difficult to implement on actual
>>> robots (or am I mistaken?).  Does anyone know of actual robots
>>> (industrial or otherwise) which implement an active compliance control
>>> scheme? (I found one application in an underwater manipulator)
>>
>>In my research on hydraulic underwater manipulators I've implemented an
>>active compliance system that enables out robot to mate a typical
>>underwater connector and socket together.
>>
>>The connector does have some passive compliance in-built, but the
>>active compliance does play a role in the mating. The controllers used
>>are just fixed gain, and it is very difficult to determine the gains
>>to use to give a reliable insertion. I'm starting to work on
>>self-tuning controllers to achieve better results for a wider range of
>>situations.
>>


AEA Technology (commercial division of the UK Atomic Energy Authority)
market the NEATER series telerobots for decommssioning in the nuclear
industry. The system includes a bilateral input device and active
(autonomous) force control. 

The system can deploy drills, reciprocating saws, nibblers,
grippers for insertions etc... For the smaller range of robots PUMA
260, 560s no passive compliance is necessary. Larger range of robots
including the AEA Technology 200 Kg arm, require a little filtering
compliance to avoid damage to the robot when deploying heavy duty
dismantling tools. 

By all accounts, (active) force control is now moving into commercial
markets. 

*************************************************************

Paul Elosegui                       Phone:  +44 (0)865 273 147
Robotics Research Group             Fax:    +44 (0)865 273 908
Dept Engineering Science
University of Oxford
Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3PJ          Email:  paul@robots.oxford.ac.uk

*************************************************************






-- 
Paul Elosegui           Email:  paul@robots.oxford.ac.uk
