Robotics to the limit
You know, that idea of using a video game controller to make a robot on the other side of the planet move is already happening and is the new frontier of robotic remote control, an interaction so fluid and fast that it seems to defy the laws of physics.
Researchers at KimLab, a laboratory dedicated to kinetic intelligence, have just revealed an innovation that is leaving experts perplexed. The PUPRLE, a system that allows robotic hugs, even with different shapes and origins, to obey commands as if they were being teleported in real time.
The secret behind this coordination spectacle is the PUPRLE's modular architecture that connects any robotic arm called a “follower” to virtually any type of control such as VR, joysticks, even improvised devices.
The system is adaptable.
If the controller and the robotic arm have the same movement structure, they work in perfect harmony, but if they are different, PUPRLE adjusts the movement language to ensure that the gesture from one side is correctly interpreted by the other. This is achieved through mappings between joints or final poses, depending on the geometry involved, in addition to the impeccable connection, what really impresses is the realism of touch.
Thanks to real-time force feedback, the operator feels everything that the robotic arm encounters, resistance, physical limits, even soft collisions, this occurs in two ways, one is the intrinsic feedback that guides the controller back to the base position when the user exceeds the natural limits of movement. The other is extrinsic feedback, which warns when the robotic arm collides with something or cannot perform the task.
This combination prevents sudden movements, accidental falls or dangerous postures for both the robot and the operator. With this system, anyone will be able to operate complex robotic arms or robots in industrial, surgical or even space environments, without the need for extensive training.
Think of risk situations such as nuclear disasters, where an operator in a safe location can manipulate machines remotely with the precision of a human hand, also in the rehabilitation industry with personalized prostheses that respond to commands in real time giving users a more natural sensation of movement.
PUPRLE is not just about robots, it is about connecting humans and machines on a level that seemed unattainable until yesterday.
