Switching Operative Coordinate System Using Intuitive Haptic Device for Alignment of Six-DOF Robot Arm

Area of Science:

• Robotics
• Human-Computer Interaction
• Automation

Background:

• Teleoperation of six-degrees-of-freedom (DOF) robot arms presents challenges in aligning position and orientation axes.
• Human cognitive processes struggle to coordinate three-DOF position and three-DOF orientation simultaneously for complex tasks.
• Optimal operational coordinate systems for alignment differ from those for orientation, complicating robot arm control.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and evaluate a teleoperation system with an interface for arbitrary switching of operational coordinates.
• To assess the efficiency of a coordinate-switching system for six-DOF robot arm tasks, specifically bolt removal.

Main Methods:

• Development of a custom teleoperation interface enabling dynamic switching between operational coordinate systems.
• Conducting comparative experiments using a bolt removal task, requiring precise six-DOF alignment.
• Evaluating robot arm translational movement and task completion time across different coordinate systems (switching, tip, base).

Main Results:

• The switching coordinate system significantly reduced translational movement of the robot arm compared to the tip coordinate system.
• The coordinate-switching system achieved a 12% decrease in average task completion time for bolt removal compared to the base coordinate system.
• Demonstrated improved efficiency and alignment capabilities in teleoperated tasks.

Conclusions:

• A coordinate-switching system in teleoperation enhances efficiency for tasks requiring complex six-DOF alignment, such as bolt removal.
• The developed system offers a more intuitive and effective method for controlling robot arms in intricate manipulation tasks.
• Enables more efficient and less cognitively demanding robot arm operations by adapting coordinate systems to task requirements.