Tactile sensor for an industrial robot or the like

A device for detecting, discriminating and identifying mechanical contact parameters when contacting an object, comprising:

• a generally horizontally extending touch surface for contacting said object, said touch surface being mounted for substantially translational horizontal movement in response to a shear force applied by contact with an object;
• transducer means for sensing said movement of said touch surface and for producing an electrical signal proportional to said movement;
• and
• signal processing means for receiving electrical signals from said transducer means and for identifying the magnitude and direction of said shear force applied to said touch surface by contact with said object.

A tactile sensing system for detecting, discriminating and identifying a number of mechanical contact phenomena when contacting an object including presence, pressure, topography and the like comprising:

• a base section;
• plate means formed with a plurality of openings in an array, said plate means being disposed above said base section and mounted for lateral movement relative thereto by resilient connectors;
• a unitary touch surface overlying and affixed to said plate means and having a plurality of sensitive sites in an array corresponding to said array of said openings in said plate means, each of said sensitive sites including a raised section extending upwardly from said touch surface for contact with said object and a pin structure integrally connected with said raised section and extending downwardly through an underlying one of said openings in said plate means, said sensitive sites being flexible enabling said pin structures to deflect vertically downwardly in response to a normal force applied by contact of said object with said sensitive sites;
• a lower platform disposed adjacent said base section and an upper platform disposed between said lower platform and said plate means, said upper and lower platforms being connected together and to said plate means for unitary movement;
• a plurality of transducer means mounted in said array on said upper platform, one of said transducer means being disposed adjacent said downwardly extending pin structure of each of said sensitive sites, said transducer means being operable to sense the magnitude of said deflection of said pin structures under the application of a normal force imposed by contact with said object and to produce a signal proportional to said magnitude of deflection;
• local data processing means mounted on said lower platform, said local data processing means receiving said electrical signals produced by said transducer means, said local data processing means being operable to convert said electrical signal from each of said transducer means from analog to digital format in serial fashion;
• and
• remote data processing means electrically connected to said local data processing means, said remote data processing means being operable to receive and process said digital signals from said local data processing means to provide information identifying said contact parameters of said object.

A tactile sensing system for detecting, discriminating and identifying a number of mechanical contact phenomena when contacting an object including presence, pressure, pressure pattern, topography, slip, incipient slip and the like comprising:

• a base section;
• plate means formed with a plurality of openings in an array, said plate means being disposed above said base section and mounted for lateral movement relative thereto by resilient connectors;
• a unitary touch surface formed overlying and affixed to said plate means and having a plurality of sensitive sites in an array corresponding to said array of said openings in said plate means, each of said sensitive sites including a raised section extending upwardly from said touch surface for contact with said object and a pin structure integrally connected with said raised section, said pin structures extending downwardly through said openings in said plate means, said sensitive sites being flexible enabling said pin structures to deflect vertically downwardly in response to a normal force applied by contact of said object with said sensitive sites, said touch surface and said plate means being laterally moveable in response to shear force exerted on said touch surface by contact with said object;
• a lower platform disposed adjacent said base section and an upper platform disposed between said lower platform and said plate means, said upper and lower platforms being connected together and to said plate means for unitary movement;
• a plurality of normal force sensing transducer means mounted in said array on said upper platform, one of said transducer means being disposed adjacent said downwardly extending pin structure of each of said sensitive sites, said transducer means being operable to sense the magnitude of said deflection of said pin structures under the application of a normal force imposed by contact with said object and to produce a signal proportional to said magnitude of deflection;
• shear detection transducer means for sensing said lateral movement of said touch surface in response to the application of a shear force thereto by contact with said object, said shear detection transducer means producing an electrical signal proportional to said lateral movement of said touch surface;
• local data processing means mounted on said lower platform, said local data processing means receiving said electrical signals from said normal force sensing transducer means and said shear detection transducer means and being operable to convert said electrical signals from each of said transducer means from analog to digital format in serial fashion;
• and
• remote data processing means electrically connected to said local data processing means, said remote data processing means being operable to receive and process said digital signals from said local data processing means to provide information identifying said contact parameters of said object.

A device for sensing contact parameters of an object, comprising:

• a touch surface for contacting said object;
• mounting means mounting said touch surface for substantially translational lateral movement in response to a shear force imposed thereon by contact with said object;
• a plurality of sensitive sites disposed in an array on said touch surface, said sensitive sites undergoing a mechanical response to a normal force imposed thereon by contact with said object;
• transducer means associated with each said sensitive sites, said transducer means including magnetic means capable of producing a magnetic field and electromagnetic sensing means operable to sense the intensity of said magnetic field produced by said magnetic means, said electromagnetic sensing means being adapted to be disposed relative to said magnetic means so that said mechanical response of said sensitive sites upon contact with an object causes a proportional change in the proximity and therefore intensity of said magnetic field sensed by said electromagnetic sensing means, said electromagnetic sensing means being operable to produce an electrical signal proportional to said change in intensity of said magnetic field;
• and
• signal processing means operable to receive said electrical signals from said electromagnetic sensing means of said transducer means and provide information identifying said contact parameters of said object.

A device for sensing contact parameters of an object comprising:

• a touch surface for contacting said object;
• mounting means mounting said touch surface for substantially translational lateral movement in response to a shear force imposed thereon by contact with said object;
• a plurality of sensitive sites disposed in an array on said touch surface, said sensitive sites undergoing a mechanical response to a normal force imposed thereon by contact with said object;
• transducer means associated with each said sensitive sites including light reflecting means, photoemitter means operable to direct a light beam to said light reflecting means, and photodetector means operable to receive light reflected by said light reflecting means from said photoemitter means, said photoemitter means and said photodetector means being adapted to be disposed relative to said light reflecting means and said sensitive sites so that said mechanical response of said sensitive sites upon contact with an object causes a proportional change in the intensity of light reflected to said photodetector means by said light reflecting means from said photoemitter means, said photodetector means being operable to produce an electrical signal proportional to said change in intensity of light received from said photoemitter means;
• and
• signal processing means operable to receive said electrical signals from said photodetector means of said transducer means and provide information identifying said contact parameters of said object.

A tactile sensor device for sensing contact parameters of objects, comprising:

• a touch responsive member having an array of sensitive sites on an outer surface thereof, said surface of said member being engageable with said objects, and said sites being deflectable inwardly substantially independently of each other in response to the imposition thereon of normal forces produced by said engagement;
• a base member;
• mounting means mounting said touch responsive member for substantially translational movement thereof generally parallel to the plane of said surface thereof in response to the imposition thereon of shear forces produced by said engagement;
• transducer means for sensing, and for producing data signals representative of, said deflection of said sites.