Abstract:

This paper proposes two sensor systems for human robot interaction in assistive drinking tasks for motion impaired people. The first sensor system uses a capacitive and resistive sensor to detect proximity and measure contact forces between the user and a regular drinking cup. The cup is held by a robot with a three finger gripper. Control strategies for the drinking process with a regular cup using both the capacitive and resistive measurements were developed and tested. The control strategies were rated by the subjects with a NASA RTLX questionnaire. Statistically significant differences between both strategies are not evident. The second sensor system uses a System on Chip (SoC) with four sensors. It enables motion impaired users to stop the robot without contact to the robot. This is accomplished with a robust detection of a human blowing on the sensor. A sensor fusion algorithm is used for detection. The results suggest the usage of both sensing methods in further robotic systems. However, the detection of a human blow should undergo further tests with motion impaired people.