Keywords:
Robotic Hands
Optoelectronic Sensors
Tendon-based Transmission
Underwater Robotics
Variable Stiffness Actuators
Compliant Structures
My research activity is focused on robotics, in particular on the
design and control of complex mechatronic devices like
anthropomorphic robot hands. Other research interests are mainly in
the areas of tendon transmission control in presence of static and
dynamic friction, and position/force control of kinematic chains
with flexible links and elastic joints.
As for tendon transmission control, I am studying control
strategies for static and dynamic friction compensation. The main
target of this control problem is to improve the performance of
tendon driving system used in robotic hands. Particular attention
is given to the modelling of the tendon-sheath transmission
characteristic with the aim of developing a suitable controller for
the compensation of the friction effects between tendon and sheath,
both in static and dynamic conditions. The problem is strongly
nonlinear and is very hard to obtain a reliable model of static
friction.
My research activity includes also real-time operating systems, in
particular RTAI-Linux, and the development of real-time control
algorithms. I have developed, with the fundamental help of some
under-graduated students, the real time software architecture for
the control of several robotic manipulator, the COMEDI driver for
the Sensoray 626 DAQ board, and XRTAI-LIB, an xrtailab interface
library.
