Force and torque converter

An apparatus for providing an electronic representation in response to force being applied in a plane and torque being applied about an axis that is orthogonal to said plane, comprising:

• a base;
• an actuating member for receiving said applied force and said applied torque, said actuating member being planarly displaced relative to said base in direct relationship to the applied force and being angularly displaced about the axis and relative to said base in direct relationship to the applied torque;
• resilient means for generally supporting the actuating member from the base, and for providing restoring force and restoring torque to the actuating member;
• and
• sensing means, responsive to movement of said actuating member relative to said base, for providing said electronic representation, the electronic representation being representative of the applied force and the applied torque according to a non-linear sensitivity curve.

An apparatus for providing an electronic representation in response to force being applied in a plane and torque being applied about an axis that is orthogonal to said plane, comprising:

• a base;
• an actuating member for receiving said applied force and said applied torque, said actuating member being planarly displaced relative to said base in direct relationship to the applied force and being angularly displaced about the axis and relative to said base in direct relationship to the applied torque;
• resilient means for generally supporting the actuating member from the base, and for providing restoring force and restoring torque to the actuating member;
• and
• sensing means responsive to movement of said actuating member relative to said base for providing said electronic representation, the electronic representation being representative of the applied force and the applied torque in a direct relationship, wherein the electronic representation is representative of the applied force in a direct relationship which is defined by a sensitivity curve relating the electronic representation to the applied force, said sensitivity curve having a derivative in a first region of the curve that is relatively small compared to a derivative in a second region of the curve and further having a derivative in a third region of the curve that is relatively small compared to said derivative in said second region, said first region corresponding to a range of small applied forces, said second region corresponding to a range of intermediate applied forces, and said third region corresponding to high applied forces.

An apparatus for providing an electronic representation in response to force being applied in a plane and torque being applied about an axis that is orthogonal to said plane comprising:

• a base;
• an actuating member for receiving said applied force and said applied torque, said actuating member being planarly displaced relative to said base in direct relationship to the applied force and being angularly displaced about the axis and relative to said base in direct relationship to the applied torque;
• resilient means for generally supporting the actuating member from the base, and for providing restoring force and restoring torque to the actuating member;
• sensing means responsive to movement of said actuating member relative to said base for providing said electronic representation, the electronic representation being representative of the applied force and the applied torque in a direct relationship;
• and
• processing means for receiving said electronic representation and for providing output data wherein said output data is representative of the applied force in a direct relationship which is defined by a sensitivity curve relating the output data to the applied force, said sensitivity curve having a derivative in a first region of the curve that is relatively small compared to a derivative in a second region of the curve and further having a derivative in a third region of the curve that is relatively small compared to said derivative in said second region, said first region corresponding to a range of small applied forces, said second region corresponding to a range of intermediate applied forces, and said third region corresponding to high applied forces.

An apparatus for providing an electronic representation in response to force being applied in a plane and torque being applied about an axis that is orthogonal to said plane, comprising:

• a base;
• an actuating member for receiving said applied force and said applied torque, said actuating member being planarly displaced relative to said base in direct relationship to the applied force and being angularly displaced about the axis and relative to said base in direct relationship to the applied torque, said actuating member constructed to be responsive only to said planarly applied force and said axially applied torque;
• resilient means for generally supporting the actuating member from the base, and for providing restoring force and restoring torque to the actuating member;
• and
• sensing means, responsive to movement of said actuating member relative to said base, for providing said electronic representation, the electronic representation being representative of the applied force and the applied torque according to a non-linear sensitivity curve.