Geometry-based finger kinematic models for joint rotation configuration and parameter estimation

Abstract

In this work, geometry-based finger kinematic models for joint rotation configuration are proposed. The purpose of the work is to provide an effective means of describing an individual-specific finger motion during flexion or extension movements as precisely as possible. Based on the finger’s geometric postures that are observed when fingers naturally grasp a cylindrical object with a circular cross-section, its geometric relation between each phalanx of a finger and the object is extracted, and forms of contact between them are taken into consideration to secure more degrees of freedom for representing finger motions and are parameterized in the model development. A parameter identification approach is adopted to find model parameters that can be used to describe an individual-specific grasping style. For the validation of the proposed models, a set of optical motion capture experiments is performed. From the simulation study, one can see that the models provide one of the feasible and viable solutions to imitate the human finger’s flexion and/or extension movements.