A Robot System for Assisting Humans in Wearing Long-Sleeved Shirt

Abstract

In this paper, we propose a robot system that can support humans, particularly those with a paralyzed half-body, in wearing a long-sleeved shirt. For this purpose, with advice from experts, we re-organize a wearing procedure assuming that it will be supported by a robot. The robot system aims to support the smooth passage of the sleeves while narrowing the movement range required for the healthy side arm. In the proposed method, the body posture of a person is estimated and then used for the motion generation of the robot. Hybrid control of the robot avoids unnecessary external force while following the movement of the person. Our experiments showed the effectiveness of the robot in supporting the human to put his arm through the sleeve, without excessive external force.