- Visiting period:
January to March 2019 - Visiting university:
Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT) - Visiting country and region:
Genoa, Italy
Content of the study program
Internship at Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT), under the supervision of Lorenzo Natale’s professor. The objective of the visit was to integrate robot skin sensors developed in Sugano Laboratory into the humanoid robot called iCub developed by IIT. Run experiments and get data to compare the new sensors with the original sensors of iCub robot and analyze manipulation possibilities using the new sensors.
Study results
The objective of the visit was fulfilled, and the robot skin sensors were integrated into iCub as new fingertips. Experiments were performed, and data was collected for analysis and possible publication. Preliminary results show that the new sensors outperform the original ones providing higher sensitivity capabilities. This will be beneficial for more precise and better manipulation tasks.
My experience abroad
During my stay at IIT I learnt about iCub several software modules to control motion and attitude of the robot in general. These include direct and inverse kinematics, motion planning, image processing to focus on objects to interact with and several safety features. I also learnt about the hardware architecture of the robot, the general structure of the connections and hardware components. This will be very useful in the future for further develop Sugano Laboratories robots and sensors, as well as tighten relationships with an important international technology development center in Europe.
Influence on my future career
The data collected in experiments will be analyzed and most likely used for future academic papers to be submitted into robotic conferences and journals. The comparison results will be shared with IIT and the collaboration will continue in the future to analyze possible tandem developments.
