Slip Detection Strategies for Automatic Grasping in Prosthetic Hands

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Robotics
• Prosthetics and Orthotics

Background:

• Maintaining a stable grasp is crucial for prosthetic hand functionality.
• Distinguishing slip signals from other sensor data is a key challenge for prosthetic controllers.
• Existing methods for slip detection include analyzing surface vibrations and changes in contact forces.

Purpose of the Study:

• To detail acoustic and force sensors for prosthetic hand slip detection.
• To evaluate the performance of the Southampton tube sensor for identifying object slippage.
• To assess the practicality of sensor technologies for real-world prosthetic applications.

Main Methods:

• Review of signal generation principles and detection technologies for prosthetic hand slip.
• Detailed examination of acoustic and force sensors employed in the Southampton Hand.
• Experimental analysis of signals generated by sliding various surfaces past the Southampton tube sensor.

Main Results:

• Slip detection signals exhibit low-frequency content.
• Low-pass filtering and signal processing yield consistent responses across different surfaces.
• The Southampton tube sensor demonstrates effective performance in detecting slip-induced vibrations.

Conclusions:

• Acoustic sensing provides a viable method for unambiguous prosthetic hand slip detection.
• The implemented signal processing techniques are fast and computationally inexpensive.
• These sensor and processing methods are practical for integration into daily-use prosthetic devices.