Shape description of general, curved surfaces using tactile sensing and surface normal information

Abstract

We propose an approach for investigating the shape properties of objects with curved surfaces using tactile sensing by a dexterous robot hand. Our proposed exploratory procedure (EP) uses multiple fingers to slide along a surface while sensing contact points and surface normals. Our approach incorporates the surface normal information into a B-spline surface fit of the data gathered from this EP. This additional surface normal information was found to improve the approximation of the surface. The shape properties of this B-spline surface are analyzed to recognize the shape of the object. A confidence estimate of the estimated shape is also calculated.