TY - JOUR T1 - Hands in the real world JF - Frontiers in Robotics and AI Y1 - 2020 A1 - Negrello, Francesca A1 - Stuart, Hannah S A1 - Catalano, Manuel G VL - 6 ER - TY - JOUR T1 - Hap-Pro: a wearable haptic device for proprioceptive feedback JF - IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering Y1 - 2018 A1 - M. Rossi A1 - M. Bianchi A1 - E. Battaglia A1 - M. G. Catalano A1 - A. Bicchi KW - haptic feedback KW - haptic interfaces KW - proprioception KW - Prosthetic hand KW - Robot sensing systems KW - Skin KW - upper extremity prosthesis KW - Visualization KW - Wheels ER - TY - JOUR T1 - Humanoids at Work: The WALK-MAN Robot in a Postearthquake Scenario JF - IEEE Robotics Automation Magazine Y1 - 2018 A1 - F. Negrello A1 - A Settimi A1 - D. Caporale A1 - G. Lentini A1 - M. Poggiani A1 - D. Kanoulas A1 - L. Muratore A1 - Luberto, E. A1 - G. Santaera A1 - L. Ciarleglio A1 - L. Ermini A1 - L. Pallottino A1 - D. G. Caldwell A1 - N. Tsagarakis A1 - A. Bicchi A1 - M. Garabini A1 - M. G. Catalano KW - Buildings KW - Earthquakes KW - Hardware KW - Legged locomotion KW - Robot sensing systems KW - Task analysis ER - TY - CONF T1 - Heart rate variability analysis during muscle fatigue due to prolonged isometric contraction T2 - Proceedings of the Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society, EMBS Y1 - 2017 A1 - A. Guidi A1 - A. Greco A1 - F. Felici A1 - A. Leo A1 - E. Ricciardi A1 - M. Bianchi A1 - A. Bicchi A1 - G. Valenza A1 - E. P. Scilingo JF - Proceedings of the Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society, EMBS ER - TY - JOUR T1 - Hand synergies: Integration of robotics and neuroscience for understanding the control of biological and artificial hands JF - Physics of Life Reviews Y1 - 2016 A1 - M. Santello A1 - M. Bianchi A1 - M Gabiccini A1 - E. Ricciardi A1 - G. Salvietti A1 - D Prattichizzo A1 - M. Ernst A1 - A. Moscatelli A1 - H. Jorntell A1 - A. Kappers A1 - K. Kyriakopulos A1 - A Albu-Schaeffer A1 - C. Castellini A1 - A. Bicchi KW - Haptics KW - Robotics VL - 17 UR - http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1571064516000269 ER - TY - JOUR T1 - A Hands-Free Interface for Controlling Virtual Electric-Powered Wheelchairs JF - INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ADVANCED ROBOTIC SYSTEMS Y1 - 2016 A1 - Gulrez, T A1 - A. Tognetti A1 - W. J. YooN A1 - Kavakli-Thorne, M. A1 - J.-J. Cabibihan KW - Assistive Technologies KW - Electric-powered Wheelchair KW - Hands-free Interface VL - 13 ER - TY - JOUR T1 - The heart side of brain neuromodulation JF - Phil. Trans. R. Soc. A Y1 - 2016 A1 - S. Rossi A1 - E. Santarnecchi A1 - G. Valenza A1 - M. Ulivelli KW - Bioengineering VL - 374 ER - TY - CONF T1 - A highly stretchable artificial sensitive skin using EIT T2 - Book of abstracts: 16th International Conference on Electrical Bio-Impedance, 17th International Conference on Electrical Impedance Tomography. ICEBI and EIT Stockholm 19–23 June 2016 Y1 - 2016 A1 - S. Russo A1 - A. Tognetti A1 - N. Carbonaro A1 - S. Nefti-meziani JF - Book of abstracts: 16th International Conference on Electrical Bio-Impedance, 17th International Conference on Electrical Impedance Tomography. ICEBI and EIT Stockholm 19–23 June 2016 PB - Karolinska Institutet CY - Stoccolma UR - http://www.icebi2016.org/images/ICEBI_2016_web.pdf ER - TY - CHAP T1 - Human and robot hands: Sensorimotor Synergies to Bridge the Gap between Neuroscience and Robotics Y1 - 2016 A1 - Matteo Bianchi A1 - Alessandro Moscatelli ER - TY - MPCT T1 - Human and Robot Hands - Sensorimotor Synergies to Bridge the Gap Between Neuroscience and Robotics Y1 - 2016 A1 - M. Bianchi A1 - A. Moscatelli KW - Haptics KW - Robotics AB -

This book looks at the common problems both human and robotic hands encounter when controlling the large number of joints, actuators and sensors required to efficiently perform motor tasks such as object exploration, manipulation and grasping. The authors adopt an integrated approach to explore the control of the hand based on sensorimotor synergies that can be applied in both neuroscience and robotics.  Hand synergies are based on goal-directed, combined muscle and kinematic activation leading to a reduction of the dimensionality of the motor and sensory space, presenting a highly effective solution for the fast and simplified design of artificial systems.

Presented in two parts, the first part, Neuroscience, provides the theoretical and experimental foundations to describe the synergistic organization of the human hand. The second part, Robotics, Models and Sensing Tools, exploits the framework of hand synergies to better control and design robotic hands and haptic/sensing systems/tools, using a reduced number of control inputs/sensors, with the goal of pushing their effectiveness close to the natural one.

Human and Robot Hands provides a valuable reference for students, researchers and designers who are interested in the study and design of the artificial hand.

JF - Springer Series on Touch and Haptic Systems PB - Springer SN - 978-3-319-26706-7 UR - http://www.springer.com/us/book/9783319267050 ER - TY - JOUR T1 - HisTOOLogy: an open-source tool for quantitative analysis of histological sections JF - Journal of Microscopy Y1 - 2015 A1 - C. Magliaro A1 - Tirella, A A1 - G. Mattei A1 - Pirone, A. A1 - A. Ahluwalia KW - Bioengineering ER - TY - JOUR T1 - How the autonomic nervous system and driving style change with incremental stressing conditions during simulated driving JF - IEEE Transactions on Intelligent Transportation Systems Y1 - 2015 A1 - A Lanata A1 - G. Valenza A1 - A. Greco A1 - C. Gentili A1 - F. Bucchi A1 - F. Frendo A1 - E. P. Scilingo KW - Bioengineering ER - TY - CHAP T1 - HANDS.DVI: A DeVice-Independent programming and control framework for robotic HANDS T2 - Gearing up and accelerating cross-fertilization between academic and industrial robotics research in Europe - Technology transfer experiments from the ECHORD project Y1 - 2014 A1 - G. Salvietti A1 - G. Gioioso A1 - M. Malvezzi A1 - D Prattichizzo A1 - A. Serio A1 - E. Farnioli A1 - M Gabiccini A1 - A. Bicchi A1 - I. Sarakoglou A1 - N G Tsagarakis A1 - D. G. Caldwell KW - Haptics KW - Robotics AB -

The scientific goal of HANDS.DVI consists of developing a common
framework to programming robotic hands independently from their kinematics,
mechanical construction, and sensor equipment complexity. Recent results on the
organization of the human hand in grasping and manipulation are the inspiration
for this experiment. The reduced set of parameters that we effectively use to control
our hands is known in the literature as the set of synergies. The synergistic
organization of the human hand is the theoretical foundation of the innovative approach
to design a unified framework for robotic hands control. Theoretical tools
have been studied to design a suitable mapping function of the control action (decomposed
in its elemental action) from a human hand model domain onto the
articulated robotic hand co-domain. The developed control framework has been
applied on an experimental set up consisting of two robotic hands with dissimilar
kinematics grasping an object instrumented with force sensors.

JF - Gearing up and accelerating cross-fertilization between academic and industrial robotics research in Europe - Technology transfer experiments from the ECHORD project VL - 94 ER - TY - CONF T1 - Haptic Exploration of Unknown Surfaces with Discontinuities T2 - Proc. IEEE/RSJ Intl Conf. on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS 2014) Y1 - 2014 A1 - Jamisola, R. S. A1 - Kormushev, P. A1 - A. Bicchi A1 - D. G. Caldwell KW - Haptics KW - Robotics JF - Proc. IEEE/RSJ Intl Conf. on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS 2014) CY - Chicago, USA UR - http://kormushev.com/papers/Jamisola_IROS-2014.pdf ER - TY - CONF T1 - Human-Like Impedance and Minimum Effort Control for Natural and Efficient Manipulation T2 - IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA2013) Y1 - 2013 A1 - A. Ajoudani A1 - M Gabiccini A1 - N G Tsagarakis A1 - A. Bicchi KW - Robotics JF - IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA2013) ER - TY - CONF T1 - HEFES: an Hybrid Engine for Facial Expressions Synthesis to control human-like androids and avatars T2 - BIOROB2012 Y1 - 2012 A1 - D. Mazzei A1 - Lazzeri, N. A1 - Hanson, D. A1 - D. De Rossi KW - Bioengineering JF - BIOROB2012 CY - Rome, Italy ER - TY - CONF T1 - Hydrogels with 3D gradient of mechanical properties T2 - Congresso Nazionale di Bioingegneria 2012 Atti Y1 - 2012 A1 - Carta, V A1 - G. Orsi A1 - G. Vozzi KW - Bioengineering JF - Congresso Nazionale di Bioingegneria 2012 Atti CY - Roma, Italy ER - TY - CHAP T1 - Hydrogels with 3D Gradient of Mechanical Properties T2 - Hydrogels: Synthesis, Characterization and Applications Y1 - 2012 A1 - G. Orsi A1 - Carta, V A1 - G. Vozzi KW - Bioengineering JF - Hydrogels: Synthesis, Characterization and Applications ER - TY - CONF T1 - The Hand Embodied T2 - Automatica.it 2011 Y1 - 2011 A1 - A. Serio A1 - M. G. Catalano A1 - G. Grioli A1 - M Gabiccini A1 - A. Bicchi KW - Haptics KW - Robotics JF - Automatica.it 2011 CY - Pisa, Italy N1 -

poster presentation

ER - TY - CONF T1 - Haptic interfaces: new strategies to convey tactile information T2 - Automatica.it 2011 Y1 - 2011 A1 - M. Bianchi A1 - E. P. Scilingo A1 - A. Bicchi KW - Haptics KW - Robotics JF - Automatica.it 2011 CY - Pisa, Italy N1 -

poster presentation

ER - TY - JOUR T1 - HEMETBeta: improvement of hepatocyte metabolism mathematical model JF - COMPUTER METHODS IN BIOMECHANICS AND BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING Y1 - 2011 A1 - G. Orsi A1 - C. De Maria A1 - M. A. Guzzardi A1 - Vozzi, F. A1 - G. Vozzi KW - Bioengineering ER - TY - PAT T1 - High throughput sensorized bioreactor for applying hydrodynamic pressure and shear stress stiumli on cell cutlures Y1 - 2011 A1 - A. Ahluwalia A1 - C. De Maria A1 - D. Mazzei A1 - G. Vozzi KW - Bioengineering ER - TY - CONF T1 - How dimension a substrate for the realisation of controlled micro- and bio-inspired environment T2 - Euromat-FEMS Y1 - 2011 A1 - Tirella, A A1 - A. Ahluwalia A1 - C. De Maria A1 - Vozzi, F. A1 - G. Vozzi A1 - Sandri, T A1 - Sassano, D A1 - Cognolato, L KW - Bioengineering AB -

European Congress and Exhibition on Advanced Materials and Processes - Oral

JF - Euromat-FEMS CY - Montpellier, France ER - TY - JOUR T1 - Heart Rate and Accelerometer data fusion for activity assessment of rescuers during emergency interventions JF - IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IN BIOMEDICINE Y1 - 2010 A1 - Curone, D. A1 - A. Tognetti A1 - Secco, E. L. A1 - G. Anania A1 - N. Carbonaro A1 - D. De Rossi A1 - G. Magenes VL - 14 UR - http://dx.medra.org/10.1109/TITB.2010.2047727 ER - TY - JOUR T1 - The hybrid glider/auv FOLAGA JF - IEEE ROBOTICS AND AUTOMATION MAGAZINE Y1 - 2010 A1 - A. Caffaz A1 - A. Caiti A1 - G. Casalino A1 - A. Turetta KW - Robotics VL - 1 UR - http://dx.medra.org/10.1109/MRA.2010.935791 ER - TY - CONF T1 - Hydrogel Bioactive Scaffold Fabricated with PAM2 System: Realization of Complex Shaped Scaffold with a Homogeneous Dispersion of HepG2 cells T2 - NIP Conference Y1 - 2010 A1 - Tirella, A A1 - Vozzi, F. A1 - G. Vozzi A1 - A. Ahluwalia KW - Bioengineering JF - NIP Conference ER - TY - CONF T1 - HISS: Harbour Intrusion Simulator System T2 - IEEE Oceans Europe 09 Y1 - 2009 A1 - A. Caiti A1 - A. Munafò A1 - G. Vettori KW - Robotics JF - IEEE Oceans Europe 09 UR - http://dx.medra.org/10.1109/OCEANSE.2009.5278264 ER - TY - JOUR T1 - HEMET: mathematical model of biochemical pathways for simulation and prediction of HEpatocyte METabolism JF - COMPUTER METHODS AND PROGRAMS IN BIOMEDICINE Y1 - 2008 A1 - C. De Maria A1 - GRASSINI, D A1 - Vozzi, F. A1 - Vinci, B. A1 - A. Landi A1 - A. Ahluwalia A1 - G. Vozzi KW - Bioengineering VL - 92 ER - TY - JOUR T1 - Heterogeneous Wireless Multirobot System JF - Robotics and Automation Magazine, IEEE Y1 - 2008 A1 - A. Bicchi A1 - A. Danesi A1 - G. Dini A1 - La Porta, S. A1 - L. Pallottino A1 - I. M. Savino A1 - R. Schiavi KW - Robotics VL - 15 UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/M-RA.2007.914925 ER - TY - JOUR T1 - A High-Throughput Bioreactor System for Simulating Physiological Environments JF - IEEE T Ind Electron Y1 - 2008 A1 - D. Mazzei A1 - Vozzi, F. A1 - Cisternino, A. A1 - G. Vozzi A1 - A. Ahluwalia KW - Bioengineering VL - 55 ER - TY - CONF T1 - Hybrid system reduction T2 - Proc. IEEE Int. Conf. on Decision and Control Y1 - 2008 A1 - E. Mazzi A1 - A. Sangiovanni Vincentelli A1 - A. Balluchi A1 - A. Bicchi KW - Embedded Control KW - Robotics JF - Proc. IEEE Int. Conf. on Decision and Control ER - TY - JOUR T1 - Hypercubes are minimal controlled invariants for discrete-time linear systems with quantized scalar input JF - Nonlinear Analysis. Hybrid systems Y1 - 2008 A1 - B. Picasso A1 - A. Bicchi KW - Embedded Control KW - Robotics AB -

Quantized linear systems are a widely studied class of nonlinear dynamics resulting from the control of a linear system through finite inputs. The stabilization problem for these models shall be studied in terms of the so called practical stability notion that essentially consists in confining the trajectories into sufficiently small neighborhoods of the equilibrium (ultimate boundedness) . In this paper, we study the problem of describing the smallest sets into which any feedback can ultimately confine the state, for a given linear single-input system with an assigned finite set of admissible input values (quantization). We show that a controlled invariant set of minimal size is contained in a family of sets (namely, hypercubes in controller-canonical form), previously introduced in [14, 15] . A comparison is presented which quantifies the improvement in tightness of the proposed analysis technique with respect to classical results using quadratic Lyapunov functions.

ER - TY - CONF T1 - Higher order method for non linear equations resolution: application to mobile robot control T2 - Proc. European Control Conference Y1 - 2007 A1 - A. Balestrino A1 - L. Pallottino KW - Autonomous Vehicles KW - Navigation and Planning AB -

In this paper a novel higher order method for the resolution of non linear equations is proposed. The particular application to the mobile robot navigation in an environment with obstacles is considered. The proposed method is based on the {\em embedded-relaxed} approach in which the dimension of the resolution space is augmented and a different and faster direction toward the root is computed. The method is proved to converge with higher order for the augmented resolution space of dimension 2 and 3. Finally, the method is applied to the problem of mobile robot navigation between obstacles considered as repulsive potentials.

JF - Proc. European Control Conference ER - TY - JOUR T1 - Hybrid Modeling and Control of the Common-Rail Injection System JF - Int. J. Control Y1 - 2007 A1 - A. Balluchi A1 - A. Bicchi A1 - E. Mazzi A1 - A. Sangiovanni-Vincentelli A1 - G. Serra KW - Automotive KW - Embedded Control AB - We present an industrial case study in automotive control of significant complexity: the new common rail fuel injection system for Diesel engines, currently under production by Magneti Marelli Powertrain.In this system, an inlet metering valve, introduced before the High Pressure (HP) pump, regulates the fuel flow that supplies the common rail according to the engine operating point (e.g. engine speed, desired torque). The standard approach followed in automotive control is to use a mean–value model for the plant and to develop a controller based on this model.I n this particular case, this approach does not provide a satisfactory solution as the discrete–continuous interactions in the fuel injection system, due to the slow time–varying frequency of the HP pump cycles and the fast sampling frequency of sensing and actuation, play a fundamental role.W e present a design approach based on a hybrid model of the Magneti Marelli Powertrain common–rail fuel–injection system for four-cylinder multi–jet engines and a hybrid approach to the design of a rail pressure controller.T he hybrid controller is compared with a classical mean–value based approach to automotive control design whereby the quality of the hybrid solution is demonstrated. VL - 80 ER - TY - CONF T1 - Hybrid Multi-rate Control of the Common-Rail T2 - European Control Conference Y1 - 2007 A1 - A. Balluchi A1 - A. Bicchi A1 - E. Mazzi A1 - A. Sangiovanni-Vincentelli A1 - G. Serra KW - Embedded Control KW - Robotics AB -

We present an industrial case study in automotive control of significant complexity: the new common-rail fuel- injection system for Diesel engines developed by Magneti Marelli Powertrain. In this system, an inlet metering valve, inserted before the High Pressure (HP) pump, regulates the fuel flow that supplies the common rail according to the engine operating point (e.g. engine speed and torque). The standard approach to controller design adopted in the automotive in- dustry is based on mean-value models of the plant. However, the fuel injection system exhibits complex discrete-continuous interactions, due to the slow time-varying frequency of the HP pump cycles and the fast sampling frequency of sensing and actuation. Hence, a hybrid approach to controller design is very promising. In this paper, we present the synthesis of a hybrid multi-rate controller for a Magneti Marelli Powertrain common-rail fuel- injection system for four-cylinder multi-jet engines. Controller design is based on a hybrid model of the injection system. The resulting hybrid controller performs significantly better then previous controllers developed in the company on the basis of mean-value models of the plant.

JF - European Control Conference ER - TY - CONF T1 - Hydroxyapatite/collagen composite matrices for bone reconstruction T2 - Termis Eu-Meeting - Tissue Engineering 2007 Y1 - 2007 A1 - G. Ciardelli A1 - GENTILE, P A1 - Mandrile, R. A1 - V. Chiono A1 - Barbani, N A1 - Mattioli-Belmonte, M. A1 - G. Vozzi A1 - P. Giusti KW - Bioengineering JF - Termis Eu-Meeting - Tissue Engineering 2007 CY - London (UK) ER - TY - CONF T1 - Hybrid Modelling and Control of the Common Rail Injection System T2 - Hybrid Systems: Computation and Control Y1 - 2006 A1 - A. Balluchi A1 - A. Bicchi A1 - E. Mazzi A1 - A. Sangiovanni Vincentelli A1 - G. Serra ED - J. Hespanha ED - A. Tiwari KW - Embedded Control KW - Robotics AB -

We present an industrial case study in automotive control of significant complexity: the new common rail fuel injection system for Diesel engines, currently under production by Magneti Marelli Powertrain. In this system, a flow-rate valve, introduced before the High Pressure (HP) pump, regulates the fuel flow that supplies the common rail according to the engine operating point. The standard approach followed in automotive control is to use a mean-value model for the plant and to develop a controller based on this model. In this particular case, this approach does not provide a satisfactory solution as the discrete-continuous interactions in the fuel injection system, due to the slow time-varying frequency of the HP pump cycles and the fast sampling frequency of sensing and actuation, play a fundamental role. We present a design approach based on a hybrid model of the Magneti Marelli Powertrain common-rail fuel-injection system for four-cylinder multi-jet engines and a hybrid approach to the design of a rail pressure controller. The hybrid controller is compared with a classical mean-value based approach to automotive control design whereby the quality of the hybrid solution is demonstrated.

JF - Hybrid Systems: Computation and Control T3 - Lecture Notes in Computer Science PB - Springer-Verlag VL - 3927 / 2006 ER - TY - CONF T1 - Hybrid Modelling of an Electronically Controlled Limited Slip Differential Y1 - 2005 A1 - A. Bicchi A1 - G. Greco A1 - M. Guiggiani A1 - G. Tonietti KW - Embedded Control KW - Robotics ER - TY - JOUR T1 - A Hybrid-Control Approach to the Parking Problem of a Wheeled Vehicle Using Limited View-Angle Visual Feedback JF - Int. Jour. of Robotics Research Y1 - 2004 A1 - P. Murrieri A1 - D. Fontanelli A1 - A. Bicchi KW - Embedded Control KW - Robotics AB -

In this paper we consider the mobile robot parking problem, i.e. the stabilization of a wheeled vehicle to a given position and orientation, using only visual feedback from low-cost cameras. The practically most relevant problem of keeping the tracked features in sight of the camera while maneuvering to park the vehicle is taken into account. This constraint, often neglected in the literature, combines with the nonholonomic nature of the vehicle kinematics in a challenging controller design problem. We provide an effective solution to such problem by using a combination of previous results on non-smooth control synthesis and recently developed hybrid control techniques. Simulations and experimental results on a laboratory vehicle are reported, showing the practicality of the proposed approach.

VL - 23 ER - TY - CONF T1 - Haptic Displays Based on Magnetorheological Fluids: Design, Realization and Psychophysical Validation T2 - Proc. 11th Symp. on Haptic Interfaces for Virtual Environment and Teleoperator Systems Y1 - 2003 A1 - E. P. Scilingo A1 - N. Sgambelluri A1 - D. De Rossi A1 - A. Bicchi KW - Haptics AB -

In this paper we explore the possibility of using magnetorheological (MR) fluids in haptic interfaces, exploiting their property of changing the rheological behaviour by tuning an external magnetic field. In particular, we propose two different prototypes of haptic display, for pinch grasp and for whole-hand immersive exploration. We briefly report on the design of these devices, describe few psychophysical experiments to assess their performance, and report on the experimental results. Such investigation is rather encouraging, and provides reliable cues as to how MR fluid based devices can be designed for haptic display applications.

JF - Proc. 11th Symp. on Haptic Interfaces for Virtual Environment and Teleoperator Systems ER - TY - CONF T1 - Haptic Illusions Induced by Tactile Flow T2 - EuroHaptics Conference Y1 - 2003 A1 - A. Bicchi A1 - D. Dente A1 - E. P. Scilingo KW - Haptics AB -

In this paper we report on a set of experiments involving perceptual illusions elicited by dynamic tactile stimulation of fingertips. These misperceptions are akin to some well studied optical illusions, which have been given an explanation in terms of the mechanisms of optic flow perception. We hypothesize that a similar perceptual mechanism exists for tactile flow, which is related to how humans perceive relative motion and pressure between the fingertips and objects in contact. We present a computational model of tactile flow, and discuss how it relates to accepted models of the neurophyisiology of touch. A particularly interesting phenomenon observed under some experimental circumstances, consisting of an incoherent tactile perception generating what we call a tactile vertigo, can be explained in terms of this model. The proposed tactile flow model also explains other phenomena observed in the past (namely, the Contact Area Spread Rate effect), and is of importance in designing simpler, more effective devices for artificial haptic sensing and displays.

JF - EuroHaptics Conference ER - TY - CONF T1 - Haptic Interfaces Based on Magnetorheological Fluids T2 - Proc.2th Int. Conf. Eurohaptics 2002 Y1 - 2002 A1 - A. Bicchi A1 - E. P. Scilingo A1 - N. Sgambelluri A1 - D. De Rossi KW - Haptics AB -

In this paper we present an innovative application of magnetorheological (MR) fluids to haptic interfaces. These materials consist of a suspension of a micron-sized, magnetizable particles in a synthetic oil. Exposure to an external magnetic field induces in the fluid a change in rheological behaviour turning it into a near-solid in few milliseconds. Just as quickly, the fluid can be returned to its liquid state by the removal of the field. MR fluids are already present on the market, used in devices such as valves, brakes, clutches, and dampers. In this paper we investigate the possibility of using MR fluids to mimic the compliance, damping, creep (in other terms, the rheology) of materials in order to realize a haptic display and we propose two different implementations. Here we only outline the first scheme, whose experimental results have been reported in our previous work, and will describe the second one. In this latter scheme we set up a psychophysical protocol where a group of volunteers were asked to interact with the MR fluid duly excited and qualitative results are discussed.

JF - Proc.2th Int. Conf. Eurohaptics 2002 ER - TY - CONF T1 - Haptic devices for minimally invasive surgery T2 - Proc. Int. Worksh. on Electroactive Polymers and Biosystems Y1 - 2001 A1 - E. P. Scilingo A1 - A. Bicchi A1 - D. De Rossi KW - Haptics JF - Proc. Int. Worksh. on Electroactive Polymers and Biosystems CY - Lucca, Italy ER - TY - CONF T1 - Haptic smart skins: from biomimetics reasoning to wearing technology T2 - Fifth Workshop on Multifunctional Polymer and Smart Polymer Systems Y1 - 2001 A1 - D. De Rossi A1 - F. Lorussi A1 - A. Mazzoldi A1 - R. Paradiso A1 - E. P. Scilingo KW - Biomechanics KW - Smart Textiles JF - Fifth Workshop on Multifunctional Polymer and Smart Polymer Systems CY - Wollongong, Australia ER - TY - CHAP T1 - Hybrid Feedback Control for Path Tracking by a Bounded-Curvature Vehicle T2 - Hybrid Systems: Computation and Control Y1 - 2001 A1 - A. Balluchi A1 - P. Souères A1 - A. Bicchi ED - Di Benedetto, M. D. ED - A. L. Sangiovanni-Vincentelli KW - Autonomous Vehicles KW - Hybrid and Embedded Control Systems KW - Nonlinear Control Systems JF - Hybrid Systems: Computation and Control T3 - Lecture Notes in Computer Science PB - Springer-Verlag CY - Heidelberg, Germany VL - 2034 ER - TY - JOUR T1 - Hands for Dextrous Manipulation and Robust Grasping: a Difficult Road Towards Simplicity JF - IEEE Trans. on Robotics and Automation Y1 - 2000 A1 - A. Bicchi KW - Haptics KW - Robot Hands VL - 16 ER - TY - JOUR T1 - Haptic discrimination of softness in teleoperation: the role of the contact area spread rate JF - IEEE Trans. on Robotics and Automation Y1 - 2000 A1 - A. Bicchi A1 - D. De Rossi A1 - E. P. Scilingo KW - Haptic Sensing KW - Haptics KW - Tactile Flow AB -

Many applications in teleoperation and virtual reality call for the implementation of effective means of displaying to the human operator information on the softness and other mechanical properties of objects being touched. The ability of humans to detect softness of different objects by tactual exploration is intimately related to both kinesthetic and cutaneous perception, and haptic displays should be designed so as to address such multimodal perceptual channel. Unfortunately, accurate detection and replication of cutaneous information in all its details appears to be a formidable task for current technology, causing most of today's haptic displays to merely address the kinesthetic part of haptic information. In this paper we investigate the possibility of surrogating detailed tactile information for softness discrimination, with information on the rate of spread of the contact area between the finger and the specimen as the contact force increases. Devices for implementing such a perceptual channel are described, and a pratical application to a mini-invasive surgery tool is presented. Psychophysical test results are reported, validating the effectiveness and practicality of the proposed approach.

VL - 16 ER - TY - CONF T1 - Hybrid Tracking Control for Spark-Ignition Engines T2 - Proc. 39th IEEE Conference on Decision and Control Y1 - 2000 A1 - A. Balluchi A1 - A. Bicchi A1 - C. Caterini A1 - C. Rossi A1 - A. L. Sangiovanni-Vincentelli KW - Automotive KW - Autonomous Vehicles KW - Hybrid and Embedded Control Systems JF - Proc. 39th IEEE Conference on Decision and Control CY - Sydney, NSW, Australia VL - 4 ER - TY - CONF T1 - Haptic display able to replicate the rheological behaviour of surgical tissues T2 - Proc. 20th International Conference IEEE/EMBS Y1 - 1998 A1 - E. P. Scilingo A1 - A. Bicchi A1 - D. De Rossi A1 - P. Iacconi KW - Bioengineering KW - Haptics KW - Robotics JF - Proc. 20th International Conference IEEE/EMBS CY - Hong Kong ER - TY - CONF T1 - Hybrid Optimization Problems in Automotive Applications T2 - Proc. IFAC International Workshop on Motion Control Y1 - 1998 A1 - A. Balluchi A1 - A. Bicchi A1 - G. Padroni A1 - C. Rossi A1 - A. L. Sangiovanni-Vincentelli KW - Automotive KW - Hybrid and Embedded Control Systems JF - Proc. IFAC International Workshop on Motion Control CY - Grenoble, France N1 - (invited paper) ER - TY - CONF T1 - Haptic display for replication of rheological behaviour of surgical tissues: modelling, control, and experiments T2 - Proc. Annual ASME Symp. on Haptic Interfaces for Virtual Environments and Teleoperator Systems Y1 - 1997 A1 - E. P. Scilingo A1 - D. De Rossi A1 - A. Bicchi A1 - P. Iaccone KW - Bioengineering KW - Haptics KW - Robotics JF - Proc. Annual ASME Symp. on Haptic Interfaces for Virtual Environments and Teleoperator Systems CY - Dallas ER - TY - CONF T1 - Hands for Dextrous Manipulation and Powerful Grasping: a Difficult Road Towards Simplicity T2 - Robotics Research - VII Y1 - 1996 A1 - A. Bicchi ED - G. Giralt ED - G. Hirzinger KW - Grasping KW - Haptics KW - Robot Hands JF - Robotics Research - VII PB - Springer Verlag CY - Berlin Heidelberg, Germany ER -