Passive reconfigurable end effector for underwater simulation on humanoids

Abstract

The underwater environment uses to be a harsh place to test aquatic robots just after analyze their performance with computational simulations. Apart from the necessary tasks, the robot has to perform additional algorithms in its first tests, like handling with drag or buoyancy forces. A mechanical simulator of the underwater environment is proposed to avoid this gap between virtual simulations and experiments in submerged spaces. This simulator is based on a passive reconfigurable mechanism attached to the robot's trunk or a human body for training before immersion. This mechanism acts as a wearable end effector of a cable-driven robot. This configuration allows to exert desired wrenches in two different links, and it is suitable for humanoid bodies. These forces focus on simulating the underwater force distributed throughout the trunk by exerting specific forces in the hip and the chest of a humanoid robot or a scuba diver. The elastic behavior of different compliant mechanisms related to this mechanism is analyzed. Theoretical simulations and real experiments are developed.