Fingerpad mechanics and grip force adaptation to friction during object manipulation
(2022)
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- Abstract
- From the child playing with its toys to the surgeon holding its scalpel, object manipulation in everyday life is omnipresent. This skill relies on collecting information on the state of the manipulated object using our senses, with touch being of first importance. Using the information provided by touch, our central nervous system sends commands to our muscles to perform movements that take into account how slippery an object is, its shape, the characteristics of the desired movement, and more. In this thesis, we studied how finger skin deformations influence object manipulation, as touch and skin deformations are closely linked. First, we present a novel device that allows for the measurement of fingerpad skin deformations during active manipulation and present the link between the grip force and skin deformations during a simple oscillation task. Then, we show how localized fingerpad strains allow to quickly adapt the grip force to the friction when lifting objects. Finally, we show how the grip force is adjusted so that the upper bound of the amount of partial slip and finger skin deformation remain similar across friction conditions. This work contributes to the understanding of the role of touch during object manipulation and provides useful information for the design of friction sensors and somatosensory prostheses.
- Affiliations
UCLouvain SST/ICTM/INMA - Pôle en ingénierie mathématique UCLouvain SSS/IONS/COSY - Systems & cognitive Neuroscience
Citations
Schiltz, F. (2022). Fingerpad mechanics and grip force adaptation to friction during object manipulation. https://hdl.handle.net/2078.5/103418