1. Technical Field
The disclosure is related to sensors (feedback mechanisms) of robotics and devices.
2. Background Information
It is well known that automation mimics the human body. It is observed that the computation systems for the data acquisition from sensors are basically a simple copy of human brain as well as the sensors are the simple copies of the receptors of the human body. It is clear that the automation systems with less than a hundred years of past, have a long way in order to reach the capability of human body with the experience of hundreds thousands years of evolution.
“Tactile Sensing”, which is the topic of the disclosure,—with current technology—is frequently limited to sense an approaching metal or a material that the sensor is sensitive and inform that to main processor by using proximity sensors. As the data which is transmitted by these sensors include only “true” or “false” and they are lack of leveled information, and they are also bulky (few millimeters diameter), these sensors are not efficient for multiple point applications.
Even for most developed humanoids, the technique that is currently being used is very expensive force/torque sensors, that are located on the joints. These sensors measure the contact pressure when an obstacle is in the way of the limb or when an object has been grasped. There exist one or more sensors and data acquisition systems for each limb (arm-elbow joint, fingers, etc.) in this detection/sensation method which costs too much.
For the application when pressure sensors are used the geometrical dimension becomes the issue, again. Even if the geometrical problem is relatively solved than again the transmission of the data to the main processor becomes an issue. Expensive data acquisition cards or microcontrollers are being used for current applications, but when the input numbers reach the level of hundred numbers; these inputs become a constraint/limiting factor. Human body that has been trying to be mimicked includes hundreds of thousands even millions of receptors in the fingertip, as it is known. And human brain processes all the data that are coming from these receptors very fast.
The most recent and similar robotic tactile sensing patent that is related is Koyoma and et. als.'s with number US20110067504A1, which is submitted at May 29, 2008 and published at Mar. 24, 2011. Optocouplers are suggested for tactile sensing, but because of the dimensions of these optocouplers for each fingertip of the humanoid, a single sensor is proposed. It is suggested that by placing one sensor for 5 millimeters with a matrix format will increase the quantity which means 9 sensors for 1 centimeter.
All related and similar patents have the common issues like, low sensitivity, low quantity sensor per one centimeter square (limited to number tens) and the constraints on the data input numbers.
It is intended to increase the number of the quantity of the sensors per one centimeter square up to more than one million. It is also aimed to measure all of these millions of points' per one centimeter displacements each and proses the data fast by avoiding high costs.
Every part in the figures are numbered and explained below.
Optocouplers are one of the components that are frequently used in circuits of encoders and in other types of electronically circuits to provide electrical isolation. Optocouplers include a normal or infrared light source (1) and a light receptor (2) (
Not every receptor (1) requires a corresponding light source (11); however each measurement point requires a corresponding receptor (2). Despite the fact that fiber optic cables (7) (8) solve the dimensional issues at the reception area, it results in an issue of an overall system dimension's being huge. But the real problem is acquiring and processing of millions of data rather than the dimensional issue. A voltmeter with one channel can only read one, a two channeled oscilloscope can read two, and a 32 analogues input data acquisition card can read 32 data. Thus, any of these options are neither cost efficient nor close to a convenient answer to the requirement of reading all the data. With this system, CMOS or CCD sensor which can be found in a conventional webcam or a similar camcorder or a digital camera is utilized to overcome above mentioned problem. Main advantage of these kinds of sensors (9) is the feature of containing millions of sensory pixels (10) depending on the resolution of the product. (
Each sensory pixel (10) is able to detect 16.4 million colors in standard usage; therefore it is possible to measure the displacement precisely by the variation of light. In
For instance if the penetration area is too small and the corresponding light is close to white (the intensity of light is too high) it will be understood that a needle type of a sharp body has sunk in. If so, the robot or the device will act like what it is programmed to. This will be a reflex program, meaning that the area of penetration can be drawn back.
Meanwhile if the robot or the device is needed for more heavy duties or does not need to be as sensitive as human skin, the elastic material (12) can be chosen with a less elasticity feature. Thus, the system will have a similar tactile sensing for bigger forces. After a calibration for the new material's elasticity module and light conductivity for the calculations, the new system will work.
It is known that the commercial thermal cameras are infrared cameras which measure the temperature. The color becomes brighter and whiter if the temperature increases when recording with infrared cameras. The proposed system will also measure any heat source near the detection field. It will help to protect the device or robot form high temperature because the measurement will be close to white just like sharp body penetration effect.
It is mentioned before that a sensor obtained from HD webcam contains more than two millions of pixels. A single component is able to contain more than twenty millions of pixels if a high definition digital camera is used, instead. One fingertip or any other part of human body can intensify that much of receptors. For this reason incoming fiber optic cables (8) from different sensory organs are located in virtual different areas (18) of the image sensor (9), therefore with one image sensor more than one sensory organ can be measured.
Because of the variety of the used products and fiber optic cable (15) diameters and pixel (10) dimensions do not match with each other and a problem can arises. In order to prevent this issue beams/rays of light can be converged (20) to each other as in
The system can work with nearly every personal computer as well as industrial computers by connecting sensors like CMOS, CCD, etc. through an electronically circuit specialized for this system to the main processor of the device or robot.
This system can answer to a lot of industrial fields that works with automation systems because the number of receptors per unit area is dramatically increased and the pressure and force values can be obtained fast.
Some outstanding application areas; robotic sensing—realizing the tactile sensing of humanoids; medical—with more receptors a better feeling of touching to the patient for remote operations (haptic); increase the sensing abilities of landmine scanning and bomb disposal robots accordingly decreasing the chance of failure and adding the temperature measurement to tactile sensing in case needed.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
a 2012 08054 | Jul 2012 | TR | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
PCT/TR2012/000179 | 10/31/2012 | WO | 00 |
Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
WO2014/011126 | 1/16/2014 | WO | A |
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
5983725 | Fischer et al. | Nov 1999 | A |
8607629 | Higaki et al. | Dec 2013 | B2 |
20110067504 | Koyama et al. | Mar 2011 | A1 |
Entry |
---|
International Search Report and Written Opinion, dated Jun. 3, 2013, pp. 1-8, issued in International Application No. PCT/TR2012/000179, issued by International Searching Authority European Patent Office, Rijswijk, The Netherlands. |
International Preliminary Report on Patentability with Annexes (Amended Claims), dated Jul. 9, 2014, pp. 1-7, issued in International Application No. PCT/TR2012/000179, issued by International Searching Authority European Patent Office, Rijswijk, The Netherlands. |