ETD

• contact point
• deformable surface
• distributed intrinsic tactile sensors
• soft surface
• tactile algorithms
• tactile sensors
• tactile technologies
• tactile toolbox

In this work, we present two main contributions, one theoretical and the other one technical, to advance the state of the art in grasp analysis.
Under a theoretical point of view, we propose an approach that extends the intrinsic contact sensing to compliant deformable surfaces. This technique is based on simple geometrical considerations, and on the force-elongation characteristics of the touched object. Experiments with real specimens with different stiffness show the effectiveness of this approach.
Under a technical point of view, we provide the Tactile Toolbox an exhaustive GUI user-friendly and "plug and-play" software implementation, that provides
· Interface for reading force/torque from any sensor
· Implementation of the intrinsic contact sensing for rigid surfaces
· Implementation of the proposed approach for deformable surfaces
· Real-time 3D graphical visualization of the surfaces with contact phenomena information
· Linear and torsional static friction coefficient estimation
This toolbox is a powerful and versatile application that can be used to study different aspects of grasping, with an easily applicable approach to contact sensing in an effective and easy-to-use manner. The toolbox can be easily adopted in conjunction with wearable force/torque sensors.