Torque Sensor Calibration Using Virtual Load for a Manipulator

Accurate load sensing of a manipulator becomes increasingly important in performing various tasks involving contact with an environment. Most of the research has been focused on improving the hardware of a force/torque sensor. The torque sensors for a manipulator suffer from crosstalk, which is difficult to compensate for even with sophisticated calibration. This research proposed a novel calibration method composed of two steps. Through the primary calibration, the torque sensor output can be related to the joint torques. The secondary calibration, which is based on a virtual load, is conducted to compensate for the crosstalk of a torque sensor. The virtual load is obtained from the sensed joint torques and manipulator configuration. Using the proposed calibration method, the external load acting on the end-effector of a manipulator can be accurately measured even with relatively low-quality torque sensors. The experimental results showed that the error in the load sensing was significantly reduced by the proposed calibration method.