Development of the 6-axis force/moment sensor for an intelligent robot's gripper

This paper describes the development of the 6-axis force/moment sensor for an intelligent robot's gripper. The intelligent robot's gripper should detect the forces Fx (x-direction force), Fy and Fz in the gripping direction and in the gravitational direction to safely grasp an unknown object. Also, it should detect the moments Mx (x-direction moment), My and Mz to accurately perceive the position of the object in the grippers. Therefore, the intelligent robot's gripper should be composed of the 6-axis force/moment sensor which can measure the forces Fx, Fy and Fz, and the moments Mx, My and Mz, simultaneously. But the grippers are mostly made with a force sensor that may detect only one-direction force. In this paper, the 6-axis force/moment sensor to make the intelligent robot's gripper is newly modeled using parallel-plate beams (PPBs), designed and fabricated. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.