Kaspar Althoefer

• Managing Director at Queen Mary University of London

Developing robotic hands that adapt to real-world dynamics remains a fundamental challenge in robotics and machine intelligence. Despite significant advances in replicating human hand kinematics and control algorithms, robotic systems still struggle to match human capabilities in dynamic environments, primarily due to inadequate tactile feedback. T...

Palpation of human tissue during Minimally Invasive Surgery is hampered due to restricted access. In this extended abstract, we present a variable stiffness and dynamic force range sensor that has the potential to address this challenge. The sensor utilises light reflection to estimate sensor deformation, and from this, the force applied. Experimen...

Robotic telemanipulation - the human-guided manipulation of remote objects - plays a pivotal role in several applications, from healthcare to operations in harsh environments. While visual feedback from cameras can provide valuable information to the human operator, haptic feedback is essential for accessing specific object properties that are diff...

Dexterous robotic manipulator teleoperation is widely used in many applications, either where it is convenient to keep the human inside the control loop, or to train advanced robot agents. So far, this technology has been used in combination with camera systems with remarkable success. On the other hand, only a limited number of studies have focuse...

Tactile information acquired through palpation plays a crucial role in relation to surface characterisation and tissue differentiation - an essential clinical requirement during surgery. In the case of Minimally Invasive Surgery, access is restricted, and tactile feedback available to surgeons is therefore reduced. This paper presents a novel stiff...

Despite a significant proportion of the Earth being covered in water, exploration of what lies below has been limited due to the challenges and difficulties inherent in the process. Current state of the art robots such as Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) and Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) are bulky, rigid and unable to conform to their envi...

Soft robotic gloves are designed to assist individuals with daily tasks that involve grasping. Such devices are however often hampered by an inability to generate enough force to enable them to perform the tasks for which they were designed. This study evaluates the grasping capabilities of a novel textile soft robotic glove, which has performance-...

Vision-based Tactile Sensors (VBTSs) show significant promise in that they can leverage image measurements to provide high-spatial-resolution human-like performance. However , current VBTS designs, typically confined to the fingertips of robotic grippers, prove somewhat inadequate, as many grasping and manipulation tasks require multiple contact po...

Vision-based Tactile Sensors (VBTSs) show significant promise in that they can leverage image measurements to provide high-spatial-resolution human-like performance. However, current VBTS designs, typically confined to the fingertips of robotic grippers, prove somewhat inadequate, as many grasping and manipulation tasks require multiple contact poi...

Hand-wearable robots, specifically exoskeletons, are designed to aid hands in daily activities, playing a crucial role in post-stroke rehabilitation and assisting the elderly. Our contribution to this field is a textile robotic glove with integrated actuators. These actuators, powered by pneumatic pressure, guide the user's hand to a desired positi...

Hand-wearable robots, specifically exoskeletons, are designed to aid hands in daily activities, playing a crucial role in post-stroke rehabilitation and assisting the elderly. Our contribution to this field is a textile robotic glove with integrated actuators. These actuators, powered by pneumatic pressure, guide the user's hand to a desired positi...

Fibre-reinforced soft robots are often considered in the design of fluid elastomer actuators, to counter ballooning and potential bursting when exposed to high levels of pressure. They also enhance deformation and navigation through confined spaces. These attributes are critical in applications such as minimally invasive surgical (MIS) procedures t...

Integrating robots into human-centric environments such as homes, necessitates advanced manipulation skills as robotic devices will need to engage with articulated objects like doors and drawers. Key challenges in robotic manipulation of articulated objects are the unpredictability and diversity of these objects' internal structures, which render m...

We introduce a novel bilateral tactile telemanipulation system for dexterous robots. The system is based on a leader-follower paradigm: it integrates two leader devices, a 6D manipulandum and a 3-finger exoskeleton, which allow the human operator to directly control a robot arm and dexterous robot hand simultaneously on the follower side. Tactile s...

The human hand has an inherent ability to manipulate and re-orientate objects without external assistance. As a consequence, we are able to operate tools and perform an array of actions using just one hand, without having to continuously re-grasp objects. Emulating this functionality in robotic end-effectors remains a key area of study with efforts...

Optical waveguides create interesting opportunities in the area of soft sensing and electronic skins due to their potential for high flexibility, quick response time, and compactness. The loss or change of light intensities inside a waveguide can be measured and converted into useful sensing feedback such as strain or shape sensing. Compared to oth...

This paper presents a novel algorithm for crack localisation and detection based on visual and tactile analysis via fibre-optics. A finger-shaped sensor based on fibre-optics is employed for the data acquisition to collect data for the analysis and the experiments. To detect the possible locations of cracks a camera is used to scan an environment w...

Artificial intelligence (AI) applications in medical robots are bringing a new era to medicine. Advanced medical robots can perform diagnostic and surgical procedures, aid rehabilitation, and provide symbiotic prosthetics to replace limbs. The technology used in these devices, including computer vision, medical image analysis, haptics, navigation,...

GelSight sensors that estimate contact geometry and force by reconstructing the deformation of their soft elastomer from images would yield poor force measurements when the elastomer deforms uniformly or reaches deformation saturation. Here we present an L $^{3}$ F-TOUCH sensor that considerably enhances the three-axis force sensing capability of...

One of the biggest problems with soft robots is precisely the fact that they are soft. Indeed the softer they are, the less force they can exert on the environment. Researchers have proposed a number of stiffening methods, but all of them have drawbacks, such as locking the shape of the device in a way that precludes further adjustments. In this pa...

The elastic bands integrated using the ruffles technique proved to be effective in enhancing the performance of the soft robotic structures. In the actuator application, the elastic bands greatly increased the bending capability and force capability of the structure, while in the eversion robot cap application, the elastic bands improved the perfor...

In conjunction with huge recent progress in camera and computer vision technology, camera-based sensors have increasingly shown considerable promise in relation to tactile sensing. In comparison to competing technologies (be they resistive, capacitive or magnetic based), they offer super-high-resolution, while suffering from fewer wiring problems....

Growing robots based on the eversion principle are known for their ability to extend rapidly, from within, along their longitudinal axis, and, in doing so, reach deep into hitherto inaccessible, remote spaces. Despite many advantages, eversion robots also present significant challenges, one of which is maintaining sensory payload at the tip without...

Common disabilities like stroke and spinal cord injuries may cause loss of motor function in hands. They can be treated with robot assisted rehabilitation techniques, like continuously opening and closing the hand with help of a robot, in a cheaper, and less time consuming manner than traditional methods. Hand exoskeletons are developed to assist r...

In current designs soft robotic bending actuators, the need for high force capabilities is not adequately addressed. In this article, we present a new inflatable actuator that exploits textile manufacturing techniques, using an elastic band to improve both bend and force performance. At a pressure of 102 kPa, the index finger sized actuator exerts...

Optical fiber bending, deformation or shape sensing are important measurement technologies and have been widely deployed in various applications including healthcare, structural monitoring and robotics. However, existing optical fiber bending sensors require complex sensor structures and interrogation systems. Here, inspired by the recent renewed i...

Since the emergence of soft robotics around two decades ago, research interest in the field has escalated at a pace. It is fuelled by the industry's appreciation of the wide range of soft materials available that can be used to create highly dexterous robots with adaptability characteristics far beyond that which can be achieved with rigid componen...

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Sensing and localising pressure resulting from physical interaction between a robot and its environment is a key requirement in the deployment of soft robots in real-life scenarios. In order to adapt the robot's behaviour in real-time, we argue that sensors must have a high sampling rate. In this paper, we present a novel tactile sensing strategy f...

Over the course of the past decade, we have witnessed a huge expansion in robotic applications, most notably from well-defined industrial environments into considerably more complex environments. The obstacles that these environments often contain present robotics with a new challenge - to equip robots with a real-time capability of avoiding them....

Dealing safely with nuclear waste is an imperative for the nuclear industry. Increasingly, robots are being developed to carry out complex tasks such as perceiving, grasping, cutting, and manipulating waste. Radioactive material can be sorted, and either stored safely or disposed of appropriately, entirely through the actions of remotely controlled...

As the ‘inventor’ of percussion as a diagnostic tool, Leopold Auenbrugger can be considered one of the founders of modern medicine [1], [2]. As a technique, it enabled clinicians to identify pathologic changes within a patient in realtime - changes which, until then, had only been identifiable posthumously by way of autopsy. In 1761, having spent s...

Proprioception, the ability to perceive one's own configuration and movement in space, enables organisms to safely and accurately interact with their environment and each other. The underlying sensory nerves that make this possible are highly dense and use sophisticated communication pathways to propagate signals from nerves in muscle, skin, and jo...

We present and validate a method to detect surface cracks with visual and tactile sensing. The proposed algorithm localises cracks in remote environments through videos/photos taken by an on-board robot camera. The identified areas of interest are then explored by a robot with a tactile sensor. Faster R-CNN object detection is used for identifying...

In recent years we have seen tremendous progress in the development of robotic solutions for minimally invasive surgery (MIS). Indeed, a number of robot-assisted MIS systems have been developed to product level and are now well-established clinical tools; Intuitive Surgical’s very successful da Vinci Surgical System a prime example. The majority of...

Proprioception, the ability to perceive one’s own configuration and movement in space, enables organisms to safely and accurately interact with their environment and each other. The underlying sensory nerves that make this possible are highly dense and use sophisticated communication pathways to propagate signals from nerves in muscle, skin and joi...

Proprioception, the ability to perceive one’s own configuration and movement in space, enables organisms to safely and accurately interact with their environment and each other. The underlying sensory nerves that make this possible are highly dense and use sophisticated communication pathways to propagate signals from nerves in muscle, skin and joi...

Dynamic soft materials that have the ability to expand and contract, change stiffness, self-heal or dissolve in response to environmental changes, are of great interest in applications ranging from biosensing and drug delivery to soft robotics and tissue engineering. This book covers the state-of-the-art and current trends in the very active and ex...

This article presents a novel hybrid algorithm based on the grey-wolf optimizer and whale optimization algorithm, referred here as grey-wolf optimizer–whale optimization algorithm, for the dynamic parametric modelling of a four degree-of-freedom master–slave robot manipulator system. The first part of this work consists of testing the feasibility o...

Despite their soft and compliant bodies, most of to-day's soft robots have limitations when it comes to elongation or extension of their main structure. In contrast to this, a new type of soft robot called the eversion robot can grow longitudinally , exploiting the principle of eversion. Eversion robots can squeeze through narrow openings, giving t...

During the pandemic healthcare faced great pressure on the availability of protective equipment. This paper describes the entire novel innovative process of design optimisation, production and deployment of face-visors to NHS frontline workers during SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. The described innovative journey spans collaboration between clinicians and ac...

In this extended abstract, we present a soft stretchable multi-modal capacitive skin sensor that can be used for exteroception and proprioception in soft surgical manipulators. A soft skin prototype was made using Ecoflex, embedding three conductive carbon grease terminal layers. This soft skin is capable of measuring stretch and touch simultaneous...

Soft actuators are free from any rigid, bulky, and hard components. This is greatly beneficial towards achieving compliant actuation and safe interactions in robots. Inspired by the eversion principle, we develop a novel soft actuator of the inhomogeneous cross-section that can linearly extend and achieve a large payload capability. The proposed so...

This work explores the use of machine learning to model the curvature of a soft-body continuum robot. Because of their compliant structures, such robots are subject to strains and deformations that are uncharacteristic of their rigid-body counterparts, giving rise to infinite degrees of freedom. Traditional modelling approaches as applied to rigid...

This paper demonstrates how tactile and proximity sensing can be used to perform automatic mechanical fractures detection (surface cracks). For this purpose, a custom-designed integrated tactile and proximity sensor has been implemented. With the help of fiber optics, the sensor measures the deformation of its body, when interacting with the physic...

We present an innovative concept for a sensor design that can simultaneously measure multi-axis force information and acquire geometry information with the use of a vision-based technique. The sensor is named F-TOUCH (force and tactile optically unified coherent haptics) which is originally inspired by the GelSight tactile sensor. However, the GelS...

Dysfunctions of upper limbs caused by diseases such as stroke result in difficulties in conducting day-today activities. Studies show that rehabilitation training using virtual reality games is helpful for patients to restore arm functions. It has been found that ensuring active patient participation and effort devoting in the process is very impor...

Force and tactile sensing has experienced a surge of interest over recent decades, as it conveys a range of information through physical interaction. Tactile sensors aim to obtain tactile information (including pressure, texture etc.). However, current tactile sensors have difficulties in accurately acquiring force signals with regards to magnitude...

This paper presents a novel approach for developing robotic grippers with variable stiffness hinges for dexterous grasps. This approach for the first time uses pneumatically actuated pouch actuators to fold and unfold morphable flaps of flexure hinges thus change stiffness of the hinge. By varying the air pressure in pouch actuators, the flexure hi...

Thin and imperceptible soft skins that can detect internal deformations as well as external forces, can go a long way to address perception and control challenges in soft robots. However, decoupling proprioceptive and exteroceptive stimuli is a challenging task. In this paper, we present a silicone-based, capacitive E-skin for exteroception and pro...

In the last decade, soft robots have been at the forefront of a robotic revolution. Due to the flexibility of the soft materials employed, soft robots are equipped with a capability to execute new tasks in new application areas-beyond what can be achieved using classical rigid-link robots. Despite these promising properties, many soft robots nowada...

Remote characterisation of the environment during physical robot-environment interaction is an important task commonly accomplished in telerobotics. This paper demonstrates how tactile and proximity sensing can be efficiently used to perform automatic crack detection. A custom-designed integrated tactile and proximity sensor is implemented. It meas...

Plant-inspired inflatable eversion robots with their tip growing behaviour have recently emerged. Because they extend from the tip, eversion robots are particularly suitable for applications that require reaching into remote places through narrow openings. Besides, they can vary their structural stiffness. Despite these essential properties which m...

In this paper, we propose benefiting from load readings at the base of a continuum appendage for real-time forward integration of Cosserat rod model with application in configuration and tip load estimation. The application of this method is successfully tested for stiffness imaging of a soft tissue, using a 3-DOF hydraulically actuated braided con...

A reliable, accurate, and yet simple dynamic model is important to analyze, design and control hybrid rigid-continuum robots. Such models should be fast, as simple as possible and user-friendly to be widely accepted by the ever-growing robotics research community. In this study, we introduce two new modeling methods for continuum manipulators: a ge...

The book was inadvertently published with an incorrect version of an author’s name in Chapter 13 as “Althoefer Kaspar” whereas it has been updated as “Kaspar Althoefer”.

Soft sensors are crucial to enable feedback in soft robots. Soft capacitive sensing is a reliable technology that can be embedded into soft pneumatic robots for obtaining proprioceptive and exteroceptive feedback. In this paper, we model a soft capacitive sensor that measures both the actuated state as well as applied external forces. We develop a...

Recent progress in soft robotics has seen new types of actuation mechanisms based on apical extension which allows robots to grow to unprecedented lengths. Eversion robots are a type of robots based on the principle of apical extension offering excellent maneuverability and ease of control allowing users to conduct tasks from a distance. Mechanical...

In the last decade, soft robots demonstrated their distinctive advantages compared to ‘hard’ robots. Soft structures can achieve high dexterity and compliance. However, only low forces can be exerted, and more complicated control strategies are needed. Variable stiffness robots offer an alternative solution to compensate for the downsides of flexib...

We present a vision-based motion analysis method for single and multiple mobile robots which allows quantifying the robot’s behaviour. The method defines how often and for how much each of the robots turn and move straight. The motion analysis relies on the robot trajectories acquired online or offline by an external camera and the algorithm is bas...