Introduction to Robotics Mechatronics Research and Development Trends and Projects

1. Introduction

In this blog, we will give a brief introduction of what is "Mechatronics" and what are the latest technology trends in the field of Robotics & Mechatronics up to the year of 2024. This blog will give some general introduction of Mechatronics to whom are enthusiastic about Automation, Robotics, Control Theory, Mechatronics and AI research and development as well as industrial applications. For simplicity, the word "Mechatronics" is a combination of "Mechanics" and "Electronics", which refer to an interdisciplinary engineering fields that integrates mechanical engineering, electronics, control systems, robotics, etc. And we are able to cover the below topics, including Robotics and Automation, Wearable Robots, Assisting Human Grasping, Nanoscale Mechanics, Intelligent Systems, etc.

2. Recent Development of Research Field in Mechatronics Research

2.1 Robotics and Automation

Project 1: Cell Phone Recycling 3D Deprinter

The 3D Deprinter is a prototype machine for disassembling cellphones. It is proven with initial testing on the flat flexible cables often found in modern cellphones. The researachers compared different prying motion and tool combinations to determine the optimum method.

Project 2: In-pipe Robots for Inspection and Reparing

MIT Leak Detection Robot for City Water Distribution Systems, the new system developed by researchers at MIT will provide a fast, inexpensive solution that can find even tiny leaks with pinpoint precision, no matter what the pipes are made of.

Wearable robots

Project 3: On human-in-the-loop optimization of human-robot interaction.

The researchers proposed "human-in-the-loop" optimization, which can overcome challenges from industrial exoskeletons, implantable medical devices, and robots that interact closely with people. The method identifies the device characteristics that result in the best objective performance for a specifc user and application. This approach has shown significant improvements in human-robot performance in research and could accelerate development and improve products.

Assisting Human Grasping

project 4: Fast in-hand slip control on unfeatured objects with programmable tactile sensing

The researchers proposed that "Direct slip sensing using a tactile sensor with a capacitive array, coupled with a programmable system on a chip, capable of mode switching and sampling rate adjustment with application in accurate dynamic object manipulation in a robotic hand when frictional slip is involved."

project 5: Robotically adjustable kinematics in a wrist-driven orthosis eases grasping across tasks

Researchers proposes that wrist constraints imposed by such devices generate undesirable reach and grasp kinematics. Here we show that using continuous robotic motor assistance to give users more adaptability in their wrist posture prior to wrist-driven grasping reduces task difficulty and perceived exertion. Without finger function, people with C5-7 spinal cord injury (SCI) regularly utilize wrist extension to passively close the fingers and thumb together for grasping. Wearable assistive grasping devices often focus on this familiar wrist-driven technique to provide additional support and amplify grasp force.

project 6: Characterizing the force-motion tradeoff in body-powered transmission design

Body powered devices, such as bowden-cable driven prosthetic hands, offer the benefit of passive extended physiological proprioception. We are studying the role and characteristics of this kinesthetic feedback method in order to better augment passive systems and design more intuitive active systems.

project 7: Elly: A Haptic Learning and Recovery System for Robust Manipulation

Even the most robust autonomous behaviors can fail. The goal of this research is to both recover and learn from failures so they can be prevented in the future. We propose haptic intervention for real-time failure recovery and data collection. Elly is a system that allows for seamless transitions between autonomous robot behaviors and human intervention while collecting the necessary sensory information to learn from the human’s recovery strategy. The system and our design choices were experimentally validated on a single arm task -- installing a lightbulb in a socket -- and a bimanual task -- screwing a cap on a bottle -- using two 7-DOF manipulators equipped 4-finger grippers. In these examples, Elly achieved over 80% task completion during a total of 40 runs.

2.2 Nanoscale Mechanics

Nanoscale Mechanics studies the materials in nanoscale, ranging from 1 to 100 nanometers. This area of research is important for understanding how materials behave differently when reduced to such small dimensions. Some of the R&D project of Nanoscale Mechanics in 2024:

project 1. Atomic Force Microscope Development

Atomic force microscope (AFM) for nanoscale imaging and surface characterization are important tools of nanotechnology research for imaging of nanoscale phenomena. And this project studies how to remove the AFM restrictions and enable advanced visualization capabilities of visualizing chemical reactions, biological responses, etc.

2.3 Intelligent Systems

project 1: Intelligent system for health monitoring and predictive maintenance of physical machines

The researchers proposed "health monitoring and fault diagnosis of physical machines in real-time are becoming more practical everyday. In this research project, we are developing a comprehensive pipeline of topics to measure physical plants, identify them, and propose solutions based on the system identifications.".

project 2: Machine Learning for Motors

The mainstream control strategies in the application of Interior Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor (IPMSM) control are Vector Control (VC) and Direct Torque Control (DTC). Advances in motor drive strategy have allowed engineers to achieve unprecedented gains in the dynamic response, steady accuracy, and parameter robustness in power electronic converters. Although these methods have proven to be very successful, there are a few well-known shortcomings of these methods

3. Related Sources

• https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/8794408
• https://mechatronics.mit.edu/projects/
• http://engineering.nyu.edu/mechatronics/projects/ResearchOLD.htm
• https://songxy.tamu.edu/lab/projects-and-research-areas/
• https://mechatronics.mit.edu/projects/
• https://manips.sites.stanford.edu/publications/publications