Control of robot hand to contact an object

A method of controlling a robot hand comprising a palm, a thumb and fingers, the thumb and the fingers each having at least one internode, the method comprising:

• obtaining a position and size of an object to be grasped by measuring the position and size of the object using an optical sensor or calculating the position and size of the object input by a user;
• moving the robot hand to the object based on the obtained position of the object;
• encircling the object with the robot hand while a size of a circle formed by the palm and the internodes is reduced so as to correspond to the obtained size of the object;
• determining whether all of the palm and the internodes have contacted the object through at least one of a motor drive current sensor, a force sensor and a tactile sensor provided at the palm and the internodes;
• and grasping the object depending upon a result of said determining, the grasping including,
• applying pressure of the thumb and the fingers to the object to grasp the object, when said determining determines that all of the thumb and the fingers have contacted the object, and
• grasping the object based on a determination as an optimum grasping signal input by the user, when said determining determines that all of the palm and the internodes have not contacted the object.

A method comprising:

• determining, using a computer and using sensors located on a robot hand that has a thumb and fingers, whether all of the thumb and the fingers are in contact with an object to be grasped by the robot hand;
• controlling, using the computer, the robot hand by,
• applying pressure of the thumb and the fingers to the object so that the robot hand grasps the object, when said determining determines that all of the thumb and the fingers have contacted the object, and
• grasping the object with the robot hand based on an optimum grasping signal input by a user, when said determining determines that all of the thumb and the fingers have not contacted the object.

An apparatus comprising:

• a robot hand including a thumb and fingers, and sensors located on the robot hand;
• and
• a computer configured to,
• determine, from information obtained by the sensors, whether all of the thumb and the fingers are in contact with an object to be grasped by the robot hand, and
• control the robot hand by,
• applying pressure of the thumb and the fingers to the object so that the robot hand grasps the object, when the computer determines that all of the thumb and the fingers have contacted the object, and
• grasping the object with the robot hand based on an optimum grasping signal input by a user, when the computer determines that all of the thumb and the fingers are not in contact with the object.