Muscle Coordination Control for an Asymmetrically Antagonistic-Driven Musculoskeletal Robot Using Attractor Selection

Figure 1

Control target and purpose. (a) Our five-fingered robot hand (right photograph) and pneumatic artificial muscles (PAMs) (left photographs) used as the actuator of the robot hand. These muscles are the McKibben actuator made in SQUSE Inc. and are driven by supplied compressed air (bottom-left pictures). (b) The structure of the index finger of the robot hand (the image and the closed photograph in the inset). The position of the tip of the index finger is controlled as a musculoskeletal robot. Various muscle lengths shown in (a) are arranged on the links of the index finger (they are also arranged for other fingers). The muscles A and B are of the same length. The muscle C is shorter than muscle A or B, and the muscle D is the shortest of all muscles on the finger. Each joint is driven from 0 deg (maximum extended state) to 90 deg (maximum flexed state).

(a)

(b)