A Modular Lockable Mechanism for Tendon-Driven Robots: Design, Modeling and Characterization

Botao Lin; Jiaole Wang; Shuang Song; Bing Li; Max Q.H. Meng

doi:10.1109/LRA.2022.3142907

A Modular Lockable Mechanism for Tendon-Driven Robots: Design, Modeling and Characterization

Botao Lin
, Jiaole Wang^*
, Shuang Song
, Bing Li
, Max Q.H. Meng

^*Corresponding author for this work

Harbin Institute of Technology Shenzhen
Southern University of Science and Technology
Chinese University of Hong Kong

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

34 Scopus citations

Abstract

Surgical robots with variable stiffness can provide more stable configurations during minimally-invasive surgery.This letter presents a new design of modular lockable mechanism which can be used to change the stiffness of tendon-driven surgical robots. Locking and unlocking are simply actuated by pulling one tendon, and each mechanism has several fixed locking angles on the joint. Consisting of this modular mechanism, a tendon-driven robot has a larger workspace and the variable stiffness. The robot shape can be maintained by the modular mechanisms rather than continuous external input. Both kinematic and shape compensation models of the robot have also been proposed. Results from simulations and experiments on the prototype have validated the locking capability of the proposed mechanism and the accuracy of the proposed models of the modular tendon-driven robots.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	2023-2030
Number of pages	8
Journal	IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters
Volume	7
Issue number	2
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1109/LRA.2022.3142907
State	Published - 1 Apr 2022
Externally published	Yes

Keywords

Bending
Medical robotics
Robots
Shape
Springs
Surgery
Tendons

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10.1109/LRA.2022.3142907

Cite this

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title = "A Modular Lockable Mechanism for Tendon-Driven Robots: Design, Modeling and Characterization",

abstract = "Surgical robots with variable stiffness can provide more stable configurations during minimally-invasive surgery.This letter presents a new design of modular lockable mechanism which can be used to change the stiffness of tendon-driven surgical robots. Locking and unlocking are simply actuated by pulling one tendon, and each mechanism has several fixed locking angles on the joint. Consisting of this modular mechanism, a tendon-driven robot has a larger workspace and the variable stiffness. The robot shape can be maintained by the modular mechanisms rather than continuous external input. Both kinematic and shape compensation models of the robot have also been proposed. Results from simulations and experiments on the prototype have validated the locking capability of the proposed mechanism and the accuracy of the proposed models of the modular tendon-driven robots.",

keywords = "Bending, Medical robotics, Robots, Shape, Springs, Surgery, Tendons",

author = "Botao Lin and Jiaole Wang and Shuang Song and Bing Li and Meng, \{Max Q.H.\}",

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AU - Li, Bing

AU - Meng, Max Q.H.

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N2 - Surgical robots with variable stiffness can provide more stable configurations during minimally-invasive surgery.This letter presents a new design of modular lockable mechanism which can be used to change the stiffness of tendon-driven surgical robots. Locking and unlocking are simply actuated by pulling one tendon, and each mechanism has several fixed locking angles on the joint. Consisting of this modular mechanism, a tendon-driven robot has a larger workspace and the variable stiffness. The robot shape can be maintained by the modular mechanisms rather than continuous external input. Both kinematic and shape compensation models of the robot have also been proposed. Results from simulations and experiments on the prototype have validated the locking capability of the proposed mechanism and the accuracy of the proposed models of the modular tendon-driven robots.

AB - Surgical robots with variable stiffness can provide more stable configurations during minimally-invasive surgery.This letter presents a new design of modular lockable mechanism which can be used to change the stiffness of tendon-driven surgical robots. Locking and unlocking are simply actuated by pulling one tendon, and each mechanism has several fixed locking angles on the joint. Consisting of this modular mechanism, a tendon-driven robot has a larger workspace and the variable stiffness. The robot shape can be maintained by the modular mechanisms rather than continuous external input. Both kinematic and shape compensation models of the robot have also been proposed. Results from simulations and experiments on the prototype have validated the locking capability of the proposed mechanism and the accuracy of the proposed models of the modular tendon-driven robots.

KW - Bending

KW - Medical robotics

KW - Robots

KW - Shape

KW - Springs

KW - Surgery

KW - Tendons

UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/85123301954

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M3 - 文章

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A Modular Lockable Mechanism for Tendon-Driven Robots: Design, Modeling and Characterization

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Keywords

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