The Command of a Virtual Industrial Robot Using a Dedicated Haptic Interface

Abstract

In this paper is presented a study regarding the possibilities of commandinga virtual robot using a haptic interface. In order to demonstrate the functionality of this concept, a dedicated device with 1 DOF was developed. This device consists of twin motor-gearbox able to acquire and transmit the angular data of the shaft and return a haptic feedback corresponding to the robot movement. The proposed haptic device makes it possible to command one joint of an industrial robot and can be used as an essential component for the development of an exoskeleton for human arm and is able to generate a haptic interaction for all the joints. The exoskeleton solution will allow a structural similarity between the haptic device and an articulated robot arm. The test results with haptic feedback scenarios show that the proposed system can help inexperienced users to handle robot operation and programming tasks in an intuitive way.