Mikhail Svinin

Cooperative control with haptic visualization in shared virtual environments

A distributed PHANToM-based system for collaborative haptic visualization of a VR crank is presented. Physical IDOF crank model providing realistic kinaesthetic sensations of inertia and viscosity is described. Theoretical and experimental kinematic trajectory patterns are compared for the case of cooperative two-arm human movements. Nonvisual visualization applications of the system are discussed.

Optimality Principles and Motion Planning of Human-Like Reaching Movements

The paper deals with modeling of human-like reaching movements. Several issues are under study. First, we consider a model of unconstrained reaching movements that corresponds to the minimization of control effort. It is shown that this model can be represented by the wellknown Beta function. The representation can be used for the construction of fractional order models and also for modeling of asymmetric velocity profiles. Next, we address the formation of boundary conditions in a natural way. From the mathematical point of view, the structure of the optimal solution is defined not only by the form of the optimality criterion but also by the boundary conditions of the optimization task. The natural boundary conditions, defined in this part of the paper, can also be used in modeling asymmetric velocity profiles. Finally, addressing the modeling of reaching movements with bounded control actions, we consider the minimum time formulation of the optimization problem and (for the n-th order integrator) find its analytical solution.

Modeling and Human Performance in Manipulating Parallel Flexible Objects

Abstract This chapter presents an analysis of human-like reaching movements in manipulation of parallel flexible objects. To predict a trajectory of the human hand, a minimum hand-jerk model and a minimum hand-force-change model based on the minimization of the integral of, respectively, squared hand jerk and squared time derivative of the hand force over the movement duration are established. It is shown that within these models, the optimal hand trajectory is composed of a fifth-order polynomial and trigonometric terms depending on the natural frequencies of the system and movement time. To estimate the mass of the hand featured in the minimum hand-force-change model, a method based on following a periodic force input is proposed. A virtual reality-based experimental setup with a haptic simulator is designed, and the predictions by the minimum hand-jerk and force-change models are verified against experimental data. The theoretical predictions match the collected data with a reasonable accuracy. The experimental results show the applicability of the two considered models for the generation of human-like reaching movements in dynamic environments.

Optimal control approach for establishing wMelPop Wolbachia infection among wild Aedes aegypti populations

Wolbachia-based biocontrol has recently emerged as a potential method for prevention and control of dengue and other vector-borne diseases. Major vector species, such as Aedes aegypti females, when deliberately infected with Wolbachia become less capable of getting viral infections and transmitting the virus to human hosts. In this paper, we propose an explicit sex-structured population model that describes an interaction of uninfected (wild) male and female mosquitoes and those deliberately infected with wMelPop strain of Wolbachia in the same locality. This particular strain of Wolbachia is regarded as the best blocker of dengue and other arboviral infections. However, wMelPop strain of Wolbachia also causes the loss of individual fitness in Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. Our model allows for natural introduction of the decision (or control) variable, and we apply the optimal control approach to simulate wMelPop Wolbachia infestation of wild Aedes aegypti populations. The control action consists in continuous periodic releases of mosquitoes previously infected with wMelPop strain of Wolbachia in laboratory conditions. The ultimate purpose of control is to find a tradeoff between reaching the population replacement in minimum time and with minimum cost of the control effort. This approach also allows us to estimate the number of Wolbachia-carrying mosquitoes to be released in day-by-day control action. The proposed method of biological control is safe to human health, does not contaminate the environment, does not make harm to non-target species, and preserves their interaction with mosquitoes in the ecosystem.

Comparing Fiducial Markers Performance for a Task of a Humanoid Robot Self-calibration of Manipulators: A Pilot Experimental Study

This paper presents our pilot study of experiments automation with a real robot in order to compare performance of different fiducial marker systems, which could be used in automated camera calibration process. We used Russian humanoid robot AR-601M and automated it’s manipulators for performing joint rotations. This paper is an extension of our previous work on ARTag, AprilTag and CALTag marker comparison in laboratory settings with large-sized markers that had showed significant superiority of CALTag system over the competitors. This time the markers were scaled down and placed on AR-601M humanoid’s palms. We automated experiments of marker rotations, analyzed the results and compared them with the previously obtained results of manual experiments with large-sized markers. The new automated pilot experiments, which were performed both in pure laboratory conditions and pseudo field environments, demonstrated significant differences with previously obtained manual experimental results: AprilTag marker system demonstrated the best performance with a success rate of 97,3% in the pseudo field environment, while ARTag was the most successful in the laboratory conditions.

Adaptive trajectory tracking control for the ball-pendulum system with time-varying uncertainties

An adaptive trajectory tracking problem for a spherical rolling robot driven by a 2DOF pendulum is considered in this paper. A feedback controller is proposed for the goal of tracking the trajectory for the full configuration of the spherical robot. To deal with time-varying uncertainty of the system dynamics, an adaptation mechanism is included in the trajectory tracking controller by parameterizing the system uncertainty with a polynomial function, weighted by unknown constant parameters adjustable by the defined update law. The constructed controller is first tested for the planar hoop-pendulum and then applied to the ball-pendulum system. The convergence to the desired trajectories under the control law is proved and then verified by simulations for tracking circular motions under perturbation.

On the Influence of Hand Dynamics on Motion Planning of Reaching Movements in Haptic Environments

The paper presents an analysis of human reaching movements in the manipulation of flexible objects. Two models, the minimum hand jerk and the minimum driving hand forcechange, are used for modelling and verification of experimental data. The data are collected with the haptic system supporting dynamic simulation of the flexible object in real time. We describe some initial experimental results and analyze the applicability of the models. It is found that even for short-term movements human motion planning strategy can depend on arm inertia and configuration. This conclusion is based on the experimental evidence of the multi-phased hand velocity profiles that can be well captured by the minimum driving hand force-change criterion. To support the latest observation, an experiment with reinforcement learning was conducted.