Patent ID: 6526669
Filing Date: 2003-03-04
Classification: A61B,B25J,G06F

Abstract:
An apparatus for acquiring human finger manipulation data, the apparatus comprising:a finger motion detector composed essentially of at least three links, at least four angle detectors, and a six-axis force sensor adapted to being fitted on a fingertip of a human finger of a human hand of an operator, the six-axis force sensor comprising a fingerstall adapted to have the fingertip of the human finger of the human hand inserted therein, a finger cover having a mounting block and for making contact with an object, and an elastic structure disposed between the fingerstall and the finger cover, the finger cover being connected and fixed to the elastic structure via the mounting block; and a base supporting the finger motion detector, wherein the base is adapted to being attached to either an external mount or the human hand, wherein the six-axis force sensor is adapted to being fit on the human finger of the human hand of the operator and connected to the base through a link mechanism constituted by the at least three links, wherein the at least four angle detectors are attached at pivots between the at least three links constituting the link mechanism and optionally at a pivot between the link mechanism and the base, wherein a position and a posture of the fingertip of the human finger of the human hand of the operator is determined by measuring a motion of the link mechanism, and wherein fingertip contact force is measured by the six-axis force sensor.