Performance Metrics for Fluidic Soft Robot Rotational Actuators.

The field of soft robotics is continuing to grow as more researchers see the potential for robots that can safely interact in unmodeled, unstructured, and uncertain environments. However, in order for the design, integration, and control of soft robotic actuators to develop into a full engineering methodology, a set of metrics and standards need to be established. This paper attempts to lay the groundwork for that process by proposing six soft robot actuator metrics that can be used to evaluate and compare characteristics and performance of soft robot actuators.

Improved Continuum Joint Configuration Estimation Using a Linear Combination of Length Measurements and Optimization of Sensor Placement.

This paper presents methods for placing length sensors on a soft continuum robot joint as well as a novel configuration estimation method that drastically minimizes configuration estimation error. The methods utilized for placing sensors along the length of the joint include a single joint length sensor, sensors lined end-to-end, sensors that overlap according to a heuristic, and sensors that are placed by an optimization that we describe in this paper. The methods of configuration estimation include directly relating sensor length to a segment of the joint's angle, using an equal weighting of overlapping sensors that cover a joint segment, and using a weighted linear combination of all sensors on the continuum joint.