Nuclear telerobotics and dextrous controllers

Abstract

Two new fields of development at AEA Technology's Harwell Laboratory are described, covering telerobotics and hand controllers for the nuclear industry. The first development describes the production of a nuclear engineered advanced telerobot (NEATER) for applications in decommissioning and waste handling. It is a re-engineered industrial robot based on the Staubli-Unimation PUMA 762 clean room manipulator. The second development described concerns dextrous hand controllers which can be used to control the motion of a telerobotic manipulator end effector as it moves in space and contacts surfaces and workpieces. Several input devices have been investigated for characteristics such as user-friendliness, compactness and cost effectiveness. Servo control of bilateral systems has been examined to optimize end point bilateral control.<>