Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117576, Singapore.
National University of Singapore Suzhou Research Institute (NUSRI), Suzhou Industrial Park, Suzhou, 215123, China.
Nat Commun. 2021 May 11;12(1):2692. doi: 10.1038/s41467-021-23020-3.
Rapid developments of robotics and virtual reality technology are raising the requirements of more advanced human-machine interfaces for achieving efficient parallel control. Exoskeleton as an assistive wearable device, usually requires a huge cost and complex data processing to track the multi-dimensional human motions. Alternatively, we propose a triboelectric bi-directional sensor as a universal and cost-effective solution to a customized exoskeleton for monitoring all of the movable joints of the human upper limbs with low power consumption. The corresponding movements, including two DOF rotations of the shoulder, twisting of the wrist, and the bending motions, are detected and utilized for controlling the virtual character and the robotic arm in real-time. Owing to the structural consistency between the exoskeleton and the human body, further kinetic analysis offers additional physical parameters without introducing other types of sensors. This exoskeleton sensory system shows a great potential of being an economic and advanced human-machine interface for supporting the manipulation in both real and virtual worlds, including robotic automation, healthcare, and training applications.
机器人技术和虚拟现实技术的快速发展对更先进的人机接口提出了更高的要求，以实现高效的并行控制。作为一种辅助可穿戴设备，外骨骼通常需要巨大的成本和复杂的数据处理来跟踪多维人体运动。相比之下，我们提出了一种摩擦电双向传感器，作为一种通用且经济高效的解决方案，可以为定制的外骨骼提供监测人体上肢所有可动关节的解决方案，同时消耗的功率低。相应的运动，包括肩部的两个自由度旋转、手腕的扭转以及弯曲运动，都可以被检测到，并用于实时控制虚拟角色和机械臂。由于外骨骼和人体之间的结构一致性，进一步的运动学分析提供了额外的物理参数，而无需引入其他类型的传感器。这种外骨骼传感系统具有成为经济先进的人机接口的巨大潜力，可以支持在真实和虚拟世界中的操作，包括机器人自动化、医疗保健和培训应用。
