Visually aided force control with fuzzy parameter tuning

Vision and force sensors provide rich information which can enable robots to execute complex tasks. However, the integration of these two different types of sensors is not a trivial task. This paper provides a novel technique for the integration of vision and force information. Visual servoing and explicit force control techniques are applied in the task frame formalism. Disadvantages of the constant parameter controllers are addressed and a solution based on fuzzy tuning rules is proposed. The solution is an example of shared control strategy. Experimental results conducted on a 2 DOF direct drive SCARA robot for the manipulation of a sample object are presented both for fixed parameter and fuzzy-tuned controller and results are compared.