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Current robotic endoluminal interventions require surgeons to hold a proximal joystick to control the distal flexible robot under 2-D X-ray guidance. However, the 2-D X-ray image is not intuitive, which not only increases the risk of surgical misoperation but also the workload of surgeons. Moreover, contact teleoperation exposes surgeons to the potentially infectious environment. To address it, this article proposes an augmented-reality-assisted touchless teleoperated robot for endoluminal intervention, called ARei. It aims to provide immersive experiences with augmented information. The robot integrates perceptual information obtained from an electromagnetic (EM) sensor, a shape sensor, and the virtual anatomy into a head-mounted display (HMD). The touchless teleoperation is used to control the robot, with the assistance of gesture recognition technology. Results show that the mean error of the calibration between the HMD and the EM tracking system is 4.67 mm, and the mean distance error between the points measured by the EM sensor and the points obtained by shape reconstruction with calibration is 5.19 mm (3.05%).

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to review studies that evaluated technology-based prompting systems for supporting participants with dementia or acquired cognitive impairment in their performance of multistep daily tasks. Design/methodology/approach A scoping review was conducted to identify eligible studies through a search of four electronic databases, that is, PubMed, PsycINFO, Web of Science and Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. Findings The search, which covered the 2010–2020 period, led to the identification of 1,311 articles, 30 of which were included in the review. These articles evaluated six different types of prompting systems: context-aware, automatic computer prompting, context-aware, mediated computer prompting, teleoperated robot prompting, self-operated augmented reality prompting, self-operated computer or tablet prompting and time-based (preset) computer, tablet or smartphone prompting. Originality/value Technology-aided prompting to help people with dementia or acquired cognitive impairment perform relevant multistep daily tasks is considered increasingly important. This review provides a picture of the different prompting options available and of their level of readiness for application in daily contexts.

Invasiveness of laparoscopic surgery can be further reduced by using needlescopic instruments which diameter approaches that of a hypodermic needle. However, such needlescopic instruments are limited by the lack of wrist mechanisms with precise and sharp articulating motion. In this article, we present a two-degree-of-freedom wrist mechanism with articulating motion and enhanced kinematic tractability for micro laparoscopic surgery. The mechanism consists of two highly curved nitinol tubes serially connected by rotary joints whose axes intersect at a remote center of motion (RCM). Its elasticity is only utilized for introducing through a trocar. Once introduced, the rigid body motions of each tube by the rotary joints generate pivoting motion of the attached end-effector about the RCM point. This allows large reorientation of the end-effector's direction with minimal displacement. The serial link structure of the mechanism leads to analytic solutions for tractable kinematics. The design, manufacturing, and the validation of the kinematics of the mechanism are presented, and the feasibility of the mechanism is demonstrated through the peg transfer test using a teleoperated robot system.

Human-in-the-loop robot control systems naturally provide the means for synergistic human–robot collaboration through control sharing. The expectation in such a system is that the strengths of each partner are combined to achieve a task performance higher than that can be achieved by the individual partners alone. However, there is no general established rule to ensure a synergistic partnership. In particular, it is not well studied how humans adapt to a nonstationary robot partner whose behavior may change in response to human actions. If the human is not given the choice to turn on or off the control sharing, the robot–human system can even be unstable depending on how the shared control is implemented. In this paper, we instantiate a human–robot shared control system with the “ball balancing task,” where a ball must be brought to a desired position on a tray held by the robot partner. The experimental setup is used to assess the effectiveness of the system and to find out the differences in human sensorimotor learning when the robot is a control sharing partner, as opposed to being a passive teleoperated robot. The results of the four-day 20-subject experiments conducted show that 1) after a short human learning phase, task execution performance is significantly improved when both human and robot are in charge. Moreover, 2) even though the subjects are not instructed about the role of the robot, they do learn faster despite the nonstationary behavior of the robot caused by the goal estimation mechanism built in.

Disinfecting a closed space is a widely discussed topic since the spread of coronavirus. Different methods like chemicals in liquids and gases are used to eliminate pathogens. But these methods would cause environmental damage, which would become another problem for humanity. We developed a robot which uses ultraviolet-C (UV-C) technology for surface disinfection, particularly room in houses, offices, hospitals etc. UV-C radiation is effective against coronavirus and is extremely effective in breaking down the DNA of microorganisms which means they cannot replicate and cause disease. The teleoperated robot is capable of 360-degree disinfection with three UV-C lamps used. It is controlled using an Android app through Bluetooth wireless interface. Due to wireless control, the operator can safely operate the robot from outside the room. The robot is also equipped with a self-timer for turning off the UV-C lamps automatically. The robot has been deployed in our lab and Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences, Kochi to sanitize the patient's rooms and bathrooms.

Introduction: Electrode array translocation is an unpredictable event with all types of arrays, even using a teleoperated robot in a clinical scenario. We aimed to compare the intracochlear trauma produced by the HiFocus™ Mid-Scala (MS) electrode array (Advanced Bionics, Valencia, CA, USA) using a teleoperated robot, with an automated robot connected to a navigation system to align the pre-curved tip of the electrode array with the coiling direction of the scala tympani (ST). Methods: Fifteen freshly frozen temporal bones were implanted with the MS array using the RobOtol® (Collin, Bagneux, France). In the first group (n = 10), the robot was teleoperated to insert the electrode array into the basal turn of the ST under stereomicroscopic vision, and then the array was driven by a slow-speed hydraulic insertion technique with an estimated placement of the pre-curved electrode tip. In the second group (n = 5), 3 points were obtained from the preoperative cone-beam computed tomography: the 2 first defining the ST insertion axis of the basal turn and a third one at the center of the ST at 270°. They provided the information to the automated system (RobOtol® connected with a navigation system) to automatically align the electrode array with the ST insertion axis and to aim the pre-curved tip toward the subsequent coiling of the ST. After this, the electrode array was manually advanced. Finally, the cochleae were obtained and fixed in a crystal resin, and the position of each electrode was determined by a micro-grinding technique. Results: In all cases, the electrode array was fully inserted into the cochlea and the depth of insertion was similar using both techniques. With the teleoperated robotic technique, translocations of the array were observed in 7/10 insertions (70%), but neither trauma nor array translocation occurred with automated robotic insertion. Conclusion: We have successfully tested an automated insertion system (robot + navigation) that could accurately align a pre-curved electrode array to the axis of the basal turn of the ST and its subsequent coiling, which reduced intracochlear insertion trauma and translocation.

Worldwide, millions of kilometres of sewers are constructed from concrete pipes. Unfortunately, concrete sewers are susceptible to corrosion from biogenic hydrogen sulphide, and, though they may pass visual inspection, their ability to hold together under load may be degraded. This paper presents the design of a teleoperated robot with a protractible probe, that allows an operator to apply a localised load to selected points within a concrete sewer pipe. We report findings from laboratory and field trials of our prototype, with initial results suggesting that this approach has the potential to contribute useful information to sewer maintenance planning.

In recent years, an increasing number of teleoperated robots have been used to provide services from a remote location. Most earlier teleoperated robot systems informed the customers that the robots are being remotely controlled, while the customers believed that they were communicating with the operators through the robots. However, it has already been shown that there are some disadvantages in informing customers about the robot teleoperation. To investigate whether customers could accept and use teleoperated robots that acted as if they were autonomous, we developed a teleoperated system in which operators represent autonomous robots. Our system was experimentally tested by employing operators that provided services to customers in a real field. It was found that many customers were particularly satisfied with the service of the teleoperated robots that behaved as if they were autonomous, while we demonstrated that customers who did not realize the robot teleoperation rated the service higher than the customers who realized the same.

It is important for communication robots to offer an enjoyable interaction experience while being reasonably persuasive. It has been suggested that robots speaking in a high pitch could be perceived as more attractive than those speaking in a low pitch. However, it is not clear whether the use of a high-pitched voice favors teleoperated robots as well. In principle, teleoperated robots could be perceived differently than autonomous robots because they embody a human agent. To investigate this aspect, we conducted a 2 (voice pitch: original vs. high) × 2 (voice gender: male vs. female) × 2 (user gender: male vs. female) between-participants experiment to study the effects of the robot voice pitch, robot voice gender, and user gender on the attitudinal responses of the users toward a teleoperated robot and the associated decision-making. It was observed that the male and female participants perceived a high-pitched voice differently. The users' awareness of the robot being teleoperated and persuasiveness of the robot were noted to be related, which may provide a plausible explanation for the interaction effects between the voice pitch and user gender.

Minimally invasive surgical operation of intramedullary (IM) nailing is a standard technique for treating diaphyseal fractures. However, in addition to its advantages, there are some drawbacks such as the frequent occurrence of malalignment, physical fatigue and high radiation exposure to medical staff. The use of robotic and navigation techniques is promising treatments for femoral fractures.This paper presents a novel robot-assisted manipulator for femoral shaft fracture reduction with indirect contact with the femur. An alternative clinical testing model was proposed for orthopedic surgeons to practice femoral fracture reduction. This model imitates the human musculoskeletal system in shape and functional performance. The rubber tube simulate muscles providing contraction forces, and the silicone simulates passive elasticity of muscles. Two-group experiments were performed for studying feasibility of the teleoperated manipulator.The average operative time was about 7min. In the first group experiments, the femur axial, antero-posterior (AP) and lateral views mean errors were 2.2mm, 0.7mm and 1.1mm, respectively, and their maximums were 3.0mm, 0.9mm and 1.5mm; the mean errors of rotation were 0.8° around x-axis, 1.6° around y-axis, 2.0° around z-axis, and their maximums were 1.1°, 2.2°, 2.9°, respectively. For the second group experiments, the femur axial, AP and lateral views mean errors were 1.8mm, 0.4mm and 0.8mm, respectively, and their maximums were 2.2mm, 0.7mm and 1.1mm; the mean errors of rotation were 1.2° around x-axis, 1.6° around y-axis, 1.9° around z-axis, and their maximums were 2.4°, 1.8°, 2.7°, respectively. Reduction for AP view displacement is easier than lateral (p0.05) because of the tube-shaped anatomy and the muscle contraction forces. Errors around x-axis are smaller than those around y-, and z- axes (p0.05), i.e., electro-mechanical actuator is easier to control than pneumatic.An experimental model for simulating human femoral characteristics was proposed. Experiments conducted on the artificial lower limb model demonstrated high reduction accuracy, safety, sufficient working space, and low radiation exposure of the proposed robot-assisted system. Thus, the minimally invasive teleoperated manipulator would have greater development prospect.

Teleoperated robot systems can support humans to accomplish their works in lots of applications. However, the performance of teleoperation is easily influenced by human operator's motor function. In order to reduce the misoperation caused by human operator's unintentional behavior, in this paper, an improved teleoperation scheme combined with Leap Motion and MYO armband is proposed to apply in teleoperating an industrial robot arm. By using the proposed method, we can achieve interaction between human operator and industrial robot arm in real-time. Besides, the proposed method can prevent the misoperation caused by unexpected arm shaking. Experimental results demonstrated the effectiveness of the proposed method for a teleoperated robot system.

Virtual reality (VR) gives immersion to operators in teleoperated robot system, and many researchers have studied its possibility for better performance. We have studied the vision system for teleoperation, and tried to transfer visual information to the operators. In this paper, we suggested other information channel methodologies. One is haptic feedback for pinching of human operator. It presents the force of the slave robot gripper. The other is vibration motors on our hand set and elbow orthesis. They give spatial information incorporating with virtual walls. We merges these haptic feedbacks with VR Tracker, and every information is integrated to Unreal Engine for virtual reality.

Shared autonomy is a situation in which agents adapt to users based on feedbacks to jointly accomplish tasks. In the case of semiautonomous agents such as mobile robots operational load can be reduced by adaptively automating their behavior. Machine learning is one of the method for adapting teleoperated agents to users as control tendency depends on users and environments. It is difficult to regard user inputs as supervisions because user controls are not always available during descisionmaking processes for agents that continually make decisions (such as navigation robots).

The objective of this research was to eliminate the influence of environmental stray light on the measured spectral reflectance in a spectral sensor system used on a weeding teleoperated robot for rape fields. The system mainly consists of a light source, signal acquisition, and data processing. In this study, optical modulation technology and discrete Fourier transform method were used to carry out experiments based on four characteristic wavelengths. The results show that the experimental system can obtain a stable reflectivity value no matter whether the stray light changes slowly or dramatically in the field environment. Furthermore, the calibration equation of spectral reflectance was obtained by curve fitting based on a FieldSpec3 portable spectrometer. The determination coefficients are all close to 1, and the root-mean-square errors are small. Through verification experiments, the results show that the average measurement error is less than 5%. Hence, this proposed method would be very helpful in improving the accuracy and efficiency of the spectral reflectance measurement, which in turn provides a theoretical basis for weed identification during in-field weeding by teleoperated robots.

It is conceivable to use a teleoperated robot as a method for exploring a disaster environment quickly while avoiding secondary disaster. According to conventional researches, the image captured be...

Body ownership transfer (BOT) comprises the illusion that we feel external objects as parts of our own body, which occurs when teleoperating android robots. In past studies, we investigated the conditions under which this illusion occurs. However, these studies were conducted using only simple operation tasks, such as moving only the robot’s hand. Does this illusion occur during more complex tasks, such as conducting a conversation? What kind of conversation setting is required to invoke this illusion? In this study, we examined the manner in which factors in social interaction affect the occurrence of BOT. Participants conversed using the teleoperated robot under different conditions and teleoperation settings. The results revealed that BOT does occur during the task of conducting a conversation, and that the conversation partner’s presence and appropriate responses are necessary to enhance BOT.

Industrials are starting to deploy interactive robots as new solutions to improve workstations. In particular, workstations where human operators may get injured because of repetitive tasks, bad postures or heavy loads are targeted. The introduction of such interactive systems on industrial workstations brings new challenges concerning human cognitive and physical considerations to factories. We followed an approach involving operators, and ergonomics and cognitive engineering skills to improve the introduction of interactive robots in the industry. In this paper, we present the first application of our work on a pyrotechnic tank cleaning workstation. Our approach is illustrated with the design of a solution through several simulation steps involving the workstation's operators. Finally, the design of a prototype based on a teleoperated robot is introduced.

Volcano observation robots Typically, volcanic eruptions cause heavy damage in its vicinity area, and the eruption often continues for years. During this period, a restricted area is set up in the vicinity of the crater, in order to ensure the safety of people. Therefore, it is important for mitigation of volcanic disaster to realize observation of the eruption and mudslide-control construction based on teleoperation-type robotic technology. To promote development of such technologies, various types of volcano exploration robots have been researched and developed in Japan and overseas. With regard to volcanic observations, this paper presents conventional methods for volcanic teleoperated observation, and discusses technical issues and research topics for the future technologies, particularly, mobile robotics and flying robotics. With regard to mudslide-control construction, the paper describes the teleoperated construction system that has been developed at Fugendake of Mount Unzen, and discusses technical problems in current unmanned construction system to be solved in the near future.

This paper presents a novel criterion to study the stability of multilateral teleoperation systems based on passivity. Such systems (modeled as n-port networks) have recently found interesting applications in cooperative haptic teleoperation and haptic-assisted training. The criterion provides researchers with an analytical, closed-form, necessary, and sufficient condition useful for both analysis and design of multilateral haptic teleoperation systems. The paper shows that when the proposed conditions reduce to the well-known Raisbeck’s passivity criterion for 2-port networks. The proposed conditions are used to study the passivity (and consequently the stability) of a dual-user haptic system for control of a single teleoperated robot. Simulations and experiments are performed to further test the validity of the proposed criterion.

This paper presents the sensor network infrastructure for a home care system that allows long-term monitoring of physiological data and everyday activities. The aim of the proposed system is to allow the elderly to live longer in their home without compromising safety and ensuring the detection of health problems. The system offers the possibility of a virtual visit via a teleoperated robot. During the visit, physiological data and activities occurring during a period of time can be discussed. These data are collected from physiological sensors (e.g., temperature, blood pressure, glucose) and environmental sensors (e.g., motion, bed/chair occupancy, electrical usage). The system can also give alarms if sudden problems occur, like a fall, and warnings based on more long-term trends, such as the deterioration of health being detected. It has been implemented and tested in a test environment and has been deployed in six real homes for a year-long evaluation. The key contribution of the paper is the presentation of an implemented system for ambient assisted living (AAL) tested in a real environment, combining the acquisition of sensor data, a flexible and adaptable middleware compliant with the OSGistandard and a context recognition application. The system has been developed in a European project called GiraffPlus.

Achieving force feedback for a nonideal teleoperator is challenging, due to complications such as friction, force sensor noise, non-backdriveability and structural resonances. Furthermore, non-collocation of the force sensors and the point of interaction results in shunt dynamics that degrade the interaction force estimation. In this paper, a method is presented to model, identify and compensate for the influence of shunt dynamics. Furthermore, a recently developed two-layer approach that enforces passivity in the time domain is implemented and evaluated in a practical setup that is dedicated for application in surgery. Experiments demonstrate that using a combination of these techniques with an impedance reflecting controller, stable bilateral interaction with both soft and hard environments is achieved, for a nonideal system. A teleoperated robot for minimally invasive surgery is used as a representative example of a nonideal surgical system.

During the teleoperated robot assisted catheter interventional neurosurgery, to improve the transparency between the patient side (slave side) and the remote control side (mast side) have been obtained plenty of attention. In this research we hypothesized that the slave catheter interventional robot fully complied with the dynamics command which comes from the master site. This paper is concerned with the design and implementation of a master side by Magnetorheological (MR) fluid, which can reflect the dynamic changes of the insertion resistance force, when the catheter goes through the blood vessel to the lesions. Experimental results showed that MR Fluid actuated haptic interface has a benefit to describe the blood viscous force during the endovascular catheterization.

We developed a teleoperated robot arm system using the Robot Service Network Protocol (RSNP). RSNP is a standard communication protocol for service robots. In order to establish a common teleoperated robot system, we investigated the application of RSNP to our teleoperated robot and newly applied the RSNP to the robot's arm control. Performing precise tasks with a robot arm is usually difficult because of the communication time delay involved with data transfer via the Internet. Here, the method of predictive display was implemented in a teleoperated robot system, and a precise task was performed in experiments using the predictive display.

The use of teleoperated robots is increasing substantially. The possibility of controlling these machines remotely in dangerous or inaccessible environments like outer space, deep water, nuclear or biologically chemically toxic environments, mines, construction sites and fires proved to be a powerful resource. However the successful requirements for telerobotics operations are still broad and imprecise. In this paper we present an analysis for a set of requirements in telerobotics operations. The approach consisted on testing some physical and psychological factors under the control of a teleoperated robot. The behavior of several human participants was recorded in real time and subsequent analyzed. The research is conducted mainly for understanding some of the factors that can map the human confidence in these kinds of scenarios. With a broad spectrum of immersive displays and network bandwidths increasing every day these requirements are becoming extremely precious for the design and implementation of telerobotics systems.

This article presents the results from a video-based evaluation study of a social robotic telepresence solution for elderly. The evaluated system is a mobile teleoperated robot called Giraff that allows caregivers to virtually enter a home and conduct a natural visit just as if they were physically there. The evaluation focuses on the perspectives from primary healthcare organizations and collects the feedback from different categories of health professionals. The evaluation included 150 participants and yielded unexpected results with respect to the acceptance of the Giraff system. In particular, greater exposure to technology did not necessarily increase acceptance and large variances occurred between the categories of health professionals. In addition to outlining the results, this study provides a number of indications with respect to increasing acceptance for technology for elderly., The final version of this article can be read at http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/15228835.2011.639509