Abstract:
At present, systems employing movement replication are limited to surgical purposes. The DaVinci system by Intuitive Surgical USA and ZEUS Robotic Surgical System by Computer Motion are two such examples. However, these systems are very costly and cannot be used for other purposes due to their large size and weight. The principle goal of the project is to provide a general purpose product which can be used in multiple situations, not just for medical purposes. Movement replication via simulation of virtual sensors over the internet allows the movement of a human arm to be replicated on a remote site using internet as a medium of communication through a robotic counterpart. Such a solution can help soldiers stay away from unnecessary exposure to dangers yet performing the given tasks, medical supervision available to countless patients via remote assistance, and radioactive material handled by non-human counterparts where needed. The project uses a potentiometer based exo-skeleton that translates the movements of a human arm into potential differences. These potential differences are digitized using a PIC based ADC and then sent to a computer via USB. This digital sequence is transmitted to the remote system using internet, which when received, is transformed into corresponding PWM signals. These PWM signals are fed to the corresponding servos of the robotic arm to perform the movement. There could be numerous dangerous situations in which human presence can be replicated by robots to perform specific tasks thus saving precious lives. Examples of these situations include battlefields, bomb disposals and areas with radioactive and poisonous gas leaks where some kind of operation is essential. This is a partial list of situations where human presence is required but it could be either too dangerous for them to be there or it may be altogether impossible. Hence an alternate system is required with which experts can operate in such areas without having to be physically present there.
