30 accepted papers
Needle-based procedures such as biopsies or radiofrequency ablation (RFA) of tumors are often considered to diagnose and treat liver cancer for their low invasiveness but raise difficulties for practitioners related to needle placement and visibility of internal anatomical structures. Efforts are be…
We address the challenge of reliable and accurate proprioception in soft robots, specifically soft robots with tight packaging constraints and relying only on internally embedded sensors. While various sensing approaches with single sensors have commonly been tried using a constant curvature assumpt
In this letter, we introduce a novel open source toolbox for design optimization in Soft Robotics. We consider that design optimization is an important trend in Soft Robotics that is changing the way in which designs will be shared and adopted. We evaluate this toolbox on the example of a cable-driv
The Finite Element Method (FEM) is a powerful modeling tool for predicting the behavior of soft robots. However, its use for control can be difficult for non-specialists of numerical computation: it requires an optimization of the computation to make it real-time. In this paper, we propose a learnin…
Soft robots are naturally designed to perform safe interactions with their environment, like locomotion and manipulation. In the literature, there are now many concepts, often bio-inspired, to propose new modes of locomotion or grasping. However, a methodology for implementing motion planning of the
This letter aims at contributing to the sim2real challenge in soft robotics. We present a method for automatic finite element model calibration based on real data using quadratic programming optimisation. The method is generic and evaluated in this study to fit mechanical parameters from anisotropic
To aid in real-world situations, soft robots need to be able to estimate their state and external interactions based on proprioceptive sensors. Estimating disturbances allows a soft robot to perform desirable force control. However, even in the case of rigid manipulators, force estimation at the end…
In this study, a rigid robot is hybridized with a soft part to improve its properties of relative positioning and safe interaction. While the design of the device is quite simple, the kinematics, on the other hand, becomes complex. Pre-operative planning of such a robot is a challenge that is faced
In this letter, we propose a method to combine the Finite Element Method (FEM) with Discrete Cosserat Modeling (DCM) to capture the mechanics and the actuation of soft robots. The FEM is used to simulate the non-linear behavior of the volume of the soft structure while the cable/rod used for the act
In rigid robotics, self-collision are usually avoided since it leads to a failure in the robot control and can also cause damage. In soft robotics, the situation is very different, and self-collisions may even be a desirable property, for example to gain artificial stiffness or to provide a natural
Parallel Continuum Robots (PCR) have received a lot of attention in recent years. This paper presents a new 6-degrees-of-freedom PCR derived from the conventional 3-PPSR parallel manipulator. This robot is driven by three limbs consisting of two flexible rods each and replacing the spherical and rev…
In this letter, we address the challenge of sensor fusion in Soft Robotics for estimating forces and deformations. In the context of intrinsic sensing, we propose the use of soft capacitive sensing to find a contact's location, and the use of pneumatic sensing to estimate the force intensity and the
In this letter, we propose to use new 3D-printed mesostructured materials to build soft robots and we present a modeling pipeline for design assistance and control. These meta-materials can be programmed before printing to target specific mechanical properties, in particular heterogeneous stiffness
This paper introduces a method for robotic steering of a flexible needle inside moving and deformable tissues. The method relies on a set of objective functions allowing to automatically steer the needle along a predefined path. In order to follow the desired trajectory, an inverse problem linking t…
While suction cups are widely used in Robotics, the literature is underdeveloped when it comes to the modelling and simulation of the suction phenomenon. In this paper, we present a novel physically-based approach to simulate the behavior of active suction cups. Our model relies on a novel formulati…
Benefiting from the deformability of soft robots, calibration, and force sensing for soft robots are possible using an external vision-based system, instead of embedded mechatronic force sensors. In this letter, we first propose a calibration method to calibrate both the sensor-robot coordinate syst
Inspired by nature, soft robots promise disruptive advances in robotics. Soft robots are naturally compliant and exhibit nonlinear behavior, which makes their study challenging. No unified framework exists to control these robots, especially when considering their dynamics. This letter proposes a me
In this letter, we introduce a new pneumatic mechanosensor dedicated to Soft Robotics and propose a generic method to reconstruct the magnitude of a contact-force acting on it. Changes in cavity volumes inside a soft silicon pad are measured by air-flow sensors. The resulting mechanosensor is charac
Catheter-based intervention plays an important role in minimally invasive surgery. For the closed-loop control of catheter robot through contacts, the loss of contact sensing along the entire catheter might result in task failure. To deal with this problem, we propose a decoupled motion control stra
Haptic feedback located on the torso is proposed to enhance the state awareness of a user in virtual reality or during teleoperation while leaving the hands free for manipulation and communication. We provide haptic feedback on the torso by compressing a set of closed air pouches against the skin in
Due to the complexity of modeling deformable materials and infinite degrees of freedom, the rich background of rigid robot control has not been transferred to soft robots. Thus, most model-based control techniques developed for soft robots and soft haptic interfaces are specific to the particular de
In this letter, we propose a new framework of external force sensing for soft robots based on the fusion of vision-based measurements and finite element model (FEM) techniques. A precise mechanical model of the robot is built using real-time FEM to describe the relationship between the external forc
Knowledge of externally applied forces is crucial for compliant robotic manipulators in minimally-invasive and endoluminal robotic surgery for both patient safety and controllability of the device. We developed a novel continuum manipulator which comprises hydraulic actuation. In this work we invest…
This letter presents a physically based algorithm to interactively simulate and control the motion of soft robots interacting with their environment. We use the finite-element method to simulate the nonlinear deformation of the soft structure, its actuators, and surroundings and propose a control me
In this paper, we propose a strategy for the control of soft robots with visual tracking and simulation-based predictor. A kinematic model of soft robots is obtained thanks to the Finite Element Method (FEM) computed in real-time. The FEM allows to obtain a prediction of the Jacobian matrix of the r…
This paper aims at providing a novel approach to modeling and controlling soft robots. Based on real-time Finite Element Method (FEM), we obtain a globally defined discrete-time kinematic model in the workspace of soft robots. From the kinematic equations, we deduce the soft-robot Jacobian matrix an…
Haptic rendering of soft bodies is essential in medical simulations of procedures such as surgery or palpation. The most commonly used approach is to recreate the sense of touch using a specific design and control of a robotic arm. In this paper, we propose a new approach, based on soft-robotics tec…
This paper presents a development of a new method dedicated to the modeling and control of Continuum Robots, based on the Finite Element Method (FEM) using quasi-static assumption. The modeling relies on a discretization of the continuum robots using 6 DoFs Frames along the structure of the robot th…
This paper presents an original method for interactions' haptic rendering when treating hyperelastic materials. Such simulations are known to be difficult due to the non-linear behavior of hyperelastic bodies; furthermore, haptic constraints enjoin contact forces to be refreshed at least at 1000 upd…
Finite Element analysis can provide accurate deformable models for soft-robots. However, using such models is very difficult in a real-time system of control. In this paper, we introduce a generic solution that enables a high-rate control and that is compatible with strong real-time constraints. Fro…