• Journal of the Korean Society of Manufacturing Process Engineers
• /
• v.21 no.9
• /
• pp.98-104
• /
• 2022

Because a robot actuator is directly affected by the external force of the robot and accounts for the largest portion of the robot system weight, developing an optimized actuator suitable for each characteristic of the robot system is essential. Although there have been many developments and studies related to robot actuators in various industrial fields, lightweight and compact actuator designs that can control force are still lacking. In this study, a novel actuator module was developed, and its performance was verified experimentally. The structure and control of various robot systems can be optimized by utilizing the proposed actuator. It can be used for various tasks by sensing external force and through feedback control.

• Journal of Institute of Control, Robotics and Systems
• /
• v.12 no.9
• /
• pp.926-934
• /
• 2006

This paper proposes intelligent control of a virtual walking machine that can generate infinite floor for various surfaces and can provide proprioceptive feedback of walking to a user. This machine allows users to participate in a life-like walking experience in virtual environments with various terrains. The controller of the machine is implemented hierarchically, at low-level for robust actuator control, at mid-level fur platform control to compensate the external forces by foot contact, and at high-level control for generating walking trajectory. The high level controller is suggested to generate continuous walking on an infinite floor for various terrains. For the high level control, each independent platform follows a man foot during the swing phase, while the other platform moves back during single stance phase. During double limb support, two platforms manipulate neutral positions to compensate the offset errors generated by velocity changes. This control can, therefore, satisfy natural walking conditions in any direction. Transition phase between the swing and the stance phases is detected by using simple switch sensor system, while human foot motions are sensed by careful calibration with a magnetic motion tracker attached to the shoe. Experimental results of walking simulations at level ground, slope, and stairs, show that with the proposed machine, a general person can walk naturally on various terrains with safety and without any considerable disturbances. This interface can be applied to various areas such as VR navigations, rehabilitation, and gait analysis.