Comparison of Theoretical and Experimental Force/ Motion Trajectories for Dextrous Manipulation With Sliding

In this article we compare theoretical and experimental tra jectories obtained for sliding an object with the fingers of a dextrous hand. The experiments were conducted using a two- fingered planar manipulator with soft fingers. Forceltorque sensors monitored the contact forces at the fingertips, and a vision system tracked the motion of the object. The predicted trajectories were obtained using a quasistatic sliding analysis and assuming Coulomb friction at the contacts. Close agree ment between the predicted and experimental results indicates that quasistatic sliding analyses can be used for motion plan ning with soft sliding fingertips, provided that the average values of the contact forces and coefficient of friction are accu rately known.