Proposition and Basic Experiments of Shape Feedback Master-Slave Arm. On the Application for the Demining Robots.

Abstract

As one of the essential technologies to realize a demining robot, which has the function of searching task of the mines in autonomous phase and digging task of the mine in tele-operated phase, we propose a new type of master-slave arm system coined as “shape-feedback” master-slave arm. Feature mechanism of“shape-feedback”master and slave arm is the articu-lated finger joints located in the middle of master and slave fingers and their unilateral control to drive master finger joints to have same angle with slave finger joints, which bend with compliance. Addition of these finger joints under unilateral control on to the gripper with conventional bilateral servo control, it is expected to improve the performance of master-slave arm. We demonstrated the validity of the “shape-feedback” master and slave arm by the basic operati on experiments and experiments using the model of demining robot.