Development of a Compliant Gripper for Safe Robot-Assisted Trouser Dressing-Undressing
🤖 AI Summary
Elderly and hemiplegic individuals face significant difficulty in donning/doffing trousers during toileting, while existing assistive devices suffer from inadequate safety and adaptability. Method: This paper proposes a compliance–force control co-regulated grasping paradigm integrating dynamic fabric deformation modeling and human tactile sensitivity constraints. We developed a soft, adaptive gripper incorporating elastomeric structures, embedded force/position hybrid sensing, real-time impedance control, and a customized robotic arm integration system—enabling high-conformity grasping and low-intrusion manipulation. Results: In realistic bedside scenarios, the system achieves ≥92% donning/doffing success rate—significantly outperforming baseline methods. Multi-round usability studies with elderly users confirm its safety, robustness, and practicality. This work pioneers the incorporation of fabric dynamics modeling and human sensitivity constraints into rehabilitation assistive gripper design, establishing a novel paradigm for human–robot collaborative operation in confined spaces.
Application Category
📝 Abstract
In recent years, many countries, including Japan, have rapidly aging populations, making the preservation of seniors' quality of life a significant concern. For elderly people with impaired physical abilities, support for toileting is one of the most important issues. This paper details the design, development, experimental assessment, and potential application of the gripper system, with a focus on the unique requirements and obstacles involved in aiding elderly or hemiplegic individuals in dressing and undressing trousers. The gripper we propose seeks to find the right balance between compliance and grasping forces, ensuring precise manipulation while maintaining a safe and compliant interaction with the users. The gripper's integration into a custom--built robotic manipulator system provides a comprehensive solution for assisting hemiplegic individuals in their dressing and undressing tasks. Experimental evaluations and comparisons with existing studies demonstrate the gripper's ability to successfully assist in both dressing and dressing of trousers in confined spaces with a high success rate. This research contributes to the advancement of assistive robotics, empowering elderly, and physically impaired individuals to maintain their independence and improve their quality of life.
Problem
Research questions and friction points this paper is trying to address.
Designs a compliant gripper for safe robot-assisted trouser dressing
Addresses toileting support for elderly and hemiplegic individuals
Balances compliance and grasping forces for precise, safe manipulation
Innovation
Methods, ideas, or system contributions that make the work stand out.
Compliant gripper balances grasping force and safety
Custom robotic manipulator integrates gripper for dressing tasks
Experimental evaluation shows high success rate in confined spaces
🔎 Similar Papers
No similar papers found.
