Ein Beitrag zur Integration von Sensoren in eine anthropomorphe künstliche Hand mit flexiblen Fluidaktoren

Novel actuator principles such as flexible fluidic actuators allow for the development of lightweight artificial hands. Improvements are the compact realisation of a large number of articulations without exceeding the size of human hands. This progress closes the gap between simple grippers and highly sophisticated robot hands for teleoperation. Applications are prosthetic hands as well as humanoid service robots. This thesis contributes to the development of sensors and control methods for such hands. The task and capability requirements are summarised with respect to the physiology and function of the human hand. Further requisites are derived from an analysis of the actuator behaviour. After demonstrating established sensing techniques in robot hands, sensors are selected, designed and optimised. The selected sensor types are used to determine joint angles, contact forces and actuator pressures. Different wiring materials and structures are evaluated for the transfer of sensor information to a control unit. The use of sensor data is demonstrated with a number of control methods for single and multiple joints, both for pneumatic and hydraulic operation. Finally, the functions of a grasp control unit interfacing between joint control and high-level robot control are discussed.