Hazlina Md. Yusof

Design and modeling of energy generated magneto rheological damper

In this paper an energy generated mono tube MR damper model has been developed for vehicle suspension systems. A 3D model of energy generated MR damper is developed in Solid Works electromagnetic simulator (EMS) where it is analyzed extensively by finite element method. This dynamic simulation clearly illustrates the power generation ability of the damper. Two magnetic fields are induced inside this damper. One is in the outer coil of the power generator and another is in the piston head coils. The complete magnetic isolation between these two fields is accomplished here, which can be seen in the finite element analysis. The induced magnetic flux densities, magnetic field intensities of this damper are analyzed for characterizing the damper’s power generation ability. Finally, the proposed MR damper’s energy generation ability was studied experimentally.

Intelligent path guidance robot for blind person assistance

Visually impaired person faced difficulty in limited movement, even in their house. A study on this field based on engineering concept is vital to help the visually impaired people. It is very important that this research come out with an intelligent path guidance robot to assist the visually impaired people in their movement. This paper presents the design and implementation of an intelligent path guidance robot to assist the visually impaired people in their movement (iPath). The robot has the capability to follow a path that is provided on the floor and also detect any obstacle that is blocking the path. Apart from that, the robot can sense the motion of the user. The robot can also detect when the user wants the robot to increase or decrease its speed. Another great advantage of the robot is that the cane that is attached on the robot can be easily detached from the robot body. In addition, the hardware design for the robot is small and lightweight. Thus, visually impaired people can comfortably receive the help from the robot in assisting their movement.

Adaptive hybrid impedance control for a 3DOF upper limb rehabilitation robot using hybrid automata

There is a growing need for effective and adaptive robot-assisted rehabilitation platforms for post-stroke patients which can facilitate considerably their sensorimotor control performance, and also ensure safety for the patients. A 3-DOF adaptive robot-assisted rehabilitation platform is proposed in this work which uses at its core a hybrid impedance control framework to track simultaneously both desired force and position trajectory, while regulating the apparent impedance of the robot as seen by the patient to ensure robot-patient compliant motion. To make the system adaptive to the patient recovery process, the impedance characteristic of the patients impaired limb is modeled as a parameter of recovery, and is estimated online using a recursive polynomial model estimator. A hybrid automata is then implemented to specify different apparent robot impedances to track the recovery process. Preliminary simulation results showed good response of the proposed framework to the changing patients arm impedance profile as well as good trajectory tracking of force and position in task space.

Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS) integrated adaptive impedance control framework for upper extremity training platform

Robotic training platform are sought out for their promising therapeutic assistance. However, distinctive advancement has yet to resolve the monotonous and lopsided aspect of current system. Thus, this paper proposes the integration of Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS)-based assessment with dynamic impedance control model, presenting an artificial compliance within the robotic assisted training platform control framework. This enhancement is hypothesised to allow better accommodation of subjects user input under specified training regimen. Feasibility study was verified via simulation of acceleration-based impedance model under MAS 0 and 1+ contraints for linear forward motion training regimen involving elbow extension.

Interactive robotic platform for education and language skill rehabilitation

In this paper, we present the mechanism and system design of a robot that is suitable for rehabilitation process for autistic children. Through some researches, robot seems to have the ability to improve the communication skills of the children with autism. An interactive robotic platform has been developed taking into consideration the robot appearance and features to encourage positive outcome in the rehabilitation of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) children. The interaction between the robot and the child included language skills, eye contact, imitation behavior, facial expression and movement of the robot. Here, a high-level controller is integrated to the system to help therapist monitors the childrens reactions towards the robot. In result, the developed robot has the ability to help therapist to diagnose and conclude the therapy session in a shorter period.

Hottest pixel segmentation based thermal image analysis for children

In this paper, the first order statistics for gray level intensity defined from thermal image is implemented to govern the significant and distinguishable characteristic pattern in thermal image of affective states. The impact of thresholding mechanism is studied to differentiate between positive affective states (happy) and negative affective states (sad) analysis in response to the stimuli adopted from International Affective Pictures System (IAPS) database. The hottest pixel segmentation technique is applied where it identifies the threshold level in a way to classify the hottest pixel area. The region of interest is narrowed to a forehead region with result of separation analysis made to left and right area. Two experiments have been conducted by using different set of stimuli and the results depicts of asymmetry and differed in culmination pattern for these two affective states. This conclusive result from this study suggests that this feature can be used as one of the important feature to give information of affective states on individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with least of facial expressions and perhaps would-be use in non-verbal means.

Challenges in simulating robotics and automation systems for real world applications utilising project based courses

In any engineering project, there is a need for a good framework and implementation process which are able to propagate effectively from the conceptual and detail design, to conducting simulation of the finalized design and finally creating a physical presence through assembly and prototyping process. Although these requirements could be generalized for any engineering project, it is much more imperative that in robotic design this is conducted as such, due to the various sensors, actuators and control requirements needed to integrate a system. This process is important since a fully integrated robotic system need to be fully optimized for it to be able to perform the required and desired function effectively.