02025nas a2200205 4500008004100000022001400041245010300055210006900158300001400227490000700241520141600248653001201664653001301676100001301689700001501702700001801717700001901735700001601754856004901770 2018 eng d a1939-141200aW-FYD: a Wearable Fabric-based Display for Haptic Multi-Cue Delivery and Tactile Augmented Reality0 aWFYD a Wearable Fabricbased Display for Haptic MultiCue Delivery a304 - 3160 v113 a

Despite the importance of softness, there is no evidence of wearable haptic systems able to deliver controllable softness cues. Here, we present the Wearable Fabric Yielding Display (W-FYD), a fabric-based display for multi-cue delivery that can be worn on user's finger and enables, for the first time, both active and passive softness exploration. It can also induce a sliding effect under the finger-pad. A given stiffness profile can be obtained by modulating the stretching state of the fabric through two motors. Furthermore, a lifting mechanism allows to put the fabric in contact with the user's finger-pad, to enable passive softness rendering. In this paper, we describe the architecture of W-FYD, and a thorough characterization of its stiffness workspace, frequency response and softness rendering capabilities. We also computed device Just Noticeable Difference in both active and passive exploratory conditions, for linear and non-linear stiffness rendering as well as for sliding direction perception. The effect of device weight was also considered. Furthermore, performance of participants and their subjective quantitative evaluation in detecting sliding direction and softness discrimination tasks are reported. Finally, applications of W-FYD in tactile augmented reality for open palpation are discussed, opening interesting perspectives in many fields of human-machine interaction.

10aHaptics10aRobotics1 aFani, S.1 aCiotti, S.1 aBattaglia, E.1 aMoscatelli, A.1 aBianchi, M. uhttp://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/8003491/01632nas a2200241 4500008003900000245006600039210006500105260004000170520094200210653001201152653001301164100001501177700001501192700001501207700001701222700001801239700001801257700002001275700001601295700001501311700001501326856004901341 2017 d00aDesign of an Under-Actuated Wrist Based on Adaptive Synergies0 aDesign of an UnderActuated Wrist Based on Adaptive Synergies aSingapore, 29 May-3 June 2017bIEEE3 a

An effective robotic wrist represents a key enabling element in robotic manipulation, especially in prosthetics. In this paper, we propose an under-actuated wrist system, which is also adaptable and allows to implement different under-actuation schemes. Our approach leverages upon the idea of soft synergies - in particular the design method of adaptive synergies - as it derives from the field of robot hand design. First we introduce the design principle and its implementation and function in a configurable test bench prototype, which can be used to demonstrate the feasibility of our idea. Furthermore, we report on results from preliminary experiments with humans, aiming to identify the most probable wrist pose during the pre-grasp phase in activities of daily living. Based on these outcomes, we calibrate our wrist prototype accordingly and demonstrate its effectiveness to accomplish grasping and manipulation tasks.

10aHaptics10aRobotics1 aCasini, S.1 aTincani, V1 aAverta, G.1 aPoggiani, M.1 aDella Santina1 aBattaglia, E.1 aCatalano, M. G.1 aBianchi, M.1 aGrioli, G.1 aBicchi, A. uhttp://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/7989789/01991nas a2200265 4500008004100000022001400041245010900055210006900164260001200233300001200245490000700257520121600264653001201480653001301492100002101505700001701526700001601543700001801559700001801577700001701595700001401612700001501626700002001641856006401661 2017 eng d a1939-141200aAn Integrated Approach to Characterize the Behavior of a Human Fingertip in Contact with a Silica Window0 aIntegrated Approach to Characterize the Behavior of a Human Fing c01/2017 a123-1290 v103 a

Understanding the mechanisms of human tactual perception represents a challenging task in haptics and humanoid robotics. A classic approach to tackle this issue is to accurately and exhaustively characterize the mechanical behavior of human fingertip. The output of this characterization can then be exploited to drive the design of numerical models, which can be used to investigate in depth the mechanisms of human sensing. In this work, we present a novel integrated measurement technique and experimental set up for in vivo characterization of the deformation of the human fingertip at contact, in terms of contact area, force, deformation, and pressure distribution. The device presented here compresses the participant's fingertip against a flat surface, while the aforementioned measurements are acquired and experimental parameters such as velocity, finger orientation, and displacement (indentation) controlled. Experimental outcomes are then compared and integrated with the output of a 3D finite element (FE) model of the human fingertip, built upon existing validated models. The agreement between numerical and experimental data represents a validation for our approach.

10aHaptics10aRobotics1 aD'Angelo, M., L.1 aCannella, F.1 aBianchi, M.1 aD'Imperio, M.1 aBattaglia, E.1 aPoggiani, M.1 aRossi, G.1 aBicchi, A.1 aCaldwell, D. G. uhttp://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?arnumber=757958202408nas a2200241 4500008004100000245007300041210006900114260001200183520171500195653001201910653001301922100001801935700001601953700001501969700001501984700001401999700001302013700001802026700002002044700001602064700001502080856007102095 2017 eng d00aPostural Hand Synergies during Environmental Constraint Exploitation0 aPostural Hand Synergies during Environmental Constraint Exploita c08/20173 a

Humans are able to intuitively exploit the shape of an object and environmental constraints to achieve stable grasps and perform dexterous manipulations. In doing that, a vast range of kinematic strategies can be observed. However, in this work we formulate the hypothesis that such ability can be described in terms of a synergistic behavior in the generation of hand postures, i.e., using a reduced set of commonly used kinematic patterns. This is in analogy with previous studies showing the presence of such behavior in different tasks, such as grasping. We investigated this hypothesis in experiments performed by six subjects, who were asked to grasp objects from a flat surface. We quantitatively characterized hand posture behavior from a kinematic perspective, i.e., the hand joint angles, in both pre-shaping and during the interaction with the environment. To determine the role of tactile feedback, we repeated the same experiments but with subjects wearing a rigid shell on the fingertips to reduce cutaneous afferent inputs. Results show the persistence of at least two postural synergies in all the considered experimental conditions and phases. Tactile impairment does not alter significantly the first two synergies, and contact with the environment generates a change only for higher order Principal Components. A good match also arises between the first synergy found in our analysis and the first synergy of grasping as quantified by previous work. The present study is motivated by the interest of learning from the human example, extracting lessons that can be applied in robot design and control. Thus, we conclude with a discussion on implications for robotics of our findings.

10aHaptics10aRobotics1 aDella Santina1 aBianchi, M.1 aAverta, G.1 aCiotti, S.1 aArapi, V.1 aFani, S.1 aBattaglia, E.1 aCatalano, M. G.1 aSantello, M1 aBicchi, A. uhttps://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnbot.2017.00041/full02465nas a2200217 4500008004500000245006700045210006600112260002800178300001600206520181400222653001202036653001302048100001702061700001702078700001702095700001402112700001802126700002002144700001502164856006802179 2016 engldsh 00aReflex Control of the Pisa/IIT SoftHand during Object Slippage0 aReflex Control of the PisaIIT SoftHand during Object Slippage aStockholm, SwedenbIEEE a1972 - 19793 a

In this work, to guarantee the Pisa/IIT SoftHand’s

grasp robustness against slippage, three reflex control modes,

namely Current, Pose and Impedance, are implemented and

experimentally evaluated. Towards this objective, ThimbleSense

fingertip sensors are designed and integrated into the thumb

and middle fingers of the SoftHand for real-time detection and

control of the slippage. Current reflex regulates the restoring

grasp forces of the hand by modulating the motor’s current

profile according to an update law. Pose and Impedance reflex

modes instead replicate this behaviour by implementing an

impedance control scheme. The difference between the two

latter is that the stiffness gain in Impedance reflex mode is

being varied in addition to the hand pose, as a function of

the slippage on the fingertips. Experimental setup also includes

a seven degrees-of-freedom robotic arm to realize consistent

trajectories (e.g. lifting) among three control modes for the sake

of comparison. Different test objects are considered to evaluate

the efficacy of the proposed reflex modes in our experimental

setup. Results suggest that task-appropriate restoring forces

can be achieved using Impedance reflex due to its capability

in demonstrating instantaneous and rather smooth reflexive

behaviour during slippage. Preliminary experiments on five

healthy human subjects provide evidence on the similarity of the

control concepts exploited by the humans and the one realized

by the Impedance reflex, highlighting its potential in prosthetic

applications.

10aHaptics10aRobotics1 aAjoudani, A.1 aHocaoglu, E.1 aAltobelli, A1 aRossi, M.1 aBattaglia, E.1 aTsagarakis, N G1 aBicchi, A. uhttp://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=748734402077nas a2200253 4500008004100000022001400041245007300055210006900128260001200197300001200209490000600221520137200227653001201599653001301611100001801624700001601642700001701658700001501675700002001690700001401710700001601724700001501740856006801755 2016 eng d a1939-141200aThimbleSense: a fingertip-wearable tactile sensor for grasp analysis0 aThimbleSense a fingertipwearable tactile sensor for grasp analys c03/2016 a121-1330 v93 a

Accurate measurement of contact forces between hand and grasped objects is crucial to study sensorimotor control during grasp and manipulation. In this work we introduce ThimbleSense, a prototype of individual-digit wearable force/torque sensor based on the principle of intrinsic tactile sensing. By exploiting the integration of this approach with an active marker-based motion capture system, the proposed device simultaneously measures absolute position and orientation of the fingertip, which in turn yields measurements of contacts and force components expressed in a global reference frame. The main advantage of this approach with respect to more conventional solutions is its versatility. Specifically, ThimbleSense can be used to study grasping and manipulation of a wide variety of objects, while still retaining complete force/torque measurements. Nevertheless, validation of the proposed device is a necessary step before it can be used for experimental purposes. In this work we present the results of a series of experiments designed to validate the accuracy of ThimbleSense measurements and evaluate the effects of distortion of tactile afferent inputs caused by the device’s rigid shells on grasp forces.

10aHaptics10aRobotics1 aBattaglia, E.1 aBianchi, M.1 aAltobelli, A1 aGrioli, G.1 aCatalano, M. G.1 aSerio, A.1 aSantello, M1 aBicchi, A. uhttp://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=729470202024nas a2200181 4500008003900000245006600039210006200105260004600167520136700213653001201580653001301592100001601605700001801621700001701639700001501656700001501671856015601686 2016 d00aA Wearable Fabric-based Display for Haptic Multi-Cue Delivery0 aWearable Fabricbased Display for Haptic MultiCue Delivery aPhiladelphia, USA, April 8-11, 2016bIEEE3 a

Softness represents one of the most informative

haptic properties, which plays a fundamental role in both

everyday tasks and more complex procedures. Thus, it is not

surprising that much effort has been devoted to designing haptic

systems able to suitably reproduce this information. At the

same time, wearability has gained an increasing importance as

a novel paradigm to enable a more effective and naturalistic

human robot interaction. Capitalizing upon our previous works

on grounded softness devices, in this paper we present the

Wearable Fabric Yielding Display (W-FYD), a fabric-based

tactile display for multi-cue delivery that can be worn by

user’s finger. W-FYD enables to implement both passive and

active tactile exploration. Different levels of stiffness can be

reproduced by modulating the stretching state of a fabric

through two DC motors. An additional vertical degree of

freedom is implemented through a lifting mechanism, which

enables to convey softness stimuli to the user’s finger pad.

Furthermore, a sliding effect on the finger can be also induced.

Experiments with humans show the effectiveness of W-FYD for

haptic multi-cue delivery.

10aHaptics10aRobotics1 aBianchi, M.1 aBattaglia, E.1 aPoggiani, M.1 aCiotti, S.1 aBicchi, A. uhttp://ieeexplore.ieee.org/search/searchresult.jsp?queryText=A%20Wearable%20Fabric-based%20Display%20for%20Haptic%20Multi-Cue%20Delivery&newsearch=true00659nas a2200205 4500008003900000245006700039210006500106260004800171300001600219653001200235653001300247100001800260700001600278700002100294700001800315700001700333700002000350700001500370856006800385 2015 d00aA Finite Element Model of Tactile Flow for Softness Perception0 aFinite Element Model of Tactile Flow for Softness Perception aMilano, Italy, August 25th-29th, 2015bIEEE a2430 - 243310aHaptics10aRobotics1 aBattaglia, E.1 aBianchi, M.1 aD'Angelo, M., L.1 aD'Imperio, M.1 aCannella, F.1 aScilingo, E. P.1 aBicchi, A. uhttp://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=731888400715nas a2200193 4500008003900000245010500039210006900144260004000213653001200253653001300265100001600278700001800294700001800312700001600330700001500346700001700361700001700378856012600395 2014 d00aExploiting hand kinematic synergies and wearable under-sensing for hand functional grasp recognition0 aExploiting hand kinematic synergies and wearable undersensing fo aNovember 3–5, 2014 Athens, Greece10aHaptics10aRobotics1 aBianchi, M.1 aCarbonaro, N.1 aBattaglia, E.1 aLorussi, F.1 aBicchi, A.1 aDe Rossi, D.1 aTognetti, A. uhttp://615830.rige.asia/publications/exploiting-hand-kinematic-synergies-and-wearable-under-sensing-hand-functional-grasp00649nas a2200193 4500008003900000245007900039210006900118260001600187653001200203653001300215100001800228700001500246700002000261700001600281700001400297700001600311700001500327856011300342 2014 d00aThimbleSense: A new wearable tactile device for human and robotic fingers 0 aThimbleSense A new wearable tactile device for human and robotic aHouston, TX10aHaptics10aRobotics1 aBattaglia, E.1 aGrioli, G.1 aCatalano, M. G.1 aBianchi, M.1 aSerio, A.1 aSantello, M1 aBicchi, A. uhttp://615830.rige.asia/publications/thimblesense-new-wearable-tactile-device-human-and-robotic-fingers.html01920nas a2200193 4500008003900000245009300039210006900132260004400201300001700245520128700262653001201549653001301561100001801574700001501592700002001607700001601627700001501643856006801658 2014 d00aThimbleSense: An Individual-Digit Wearable Tactile Sensor for Experimental Grasp Studies0 aThimbleSense An IndividualDigit Wearable Tactile Sensor for Expe a Hong Kong, May 31 - June 7, 2014bIEEE a2728 - 2735 3 a

Measuring contact forces applied by a hand to a grasped object is a necessary step to understand the mysteries that still hide in the unparalleled human grasping ability. Nevertheless, simultaneous collection of information about the position of contacts and about the magnitude and direction of forces is still an elusive task. In this paper we introduce a wearable device that addresses this problem, and can be used to measure generalized forces during grasping. By assembling two supports around a commercial 6-axis force/torque sensor we obtain a thimble that can be easily positioned on a fingertip. The device is used in conjunction with an active marker-based motion capture system to simultaneously obtain absolute position and orientation of the thimbles, without requiring any assumptions on the kinematics of the hand. Finally, using the contact centroid algorithm, introduced in [1], position of contact points during grasping are determined. This paper shows the design and implementation of the device, as well as some preliminary experimental validation.

10aHaptics10aRobotics1 aBattaglia, E.1 aGrioli, G.1 aCatalano, M. G.1 aSantello, M1 aBicchi, A. uhttp://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=6907250