1233 results about "Motion range" patented technology

A parallel mechanism is capable of positioning and orienting an end platform with up to six or more degrees of freedom. In preferred embodiments, the mechanism includes six links having a first and second ends. The first end is connected to an end platform for supporting a tool, while the second end is connected to an actuator capable of translating the second end. A rotational drive mechanism may be provided for rotating an object mounted on the end platform at varying orientations of the end platform independently of movement of the end platform as a whole. The links may be curved in order to avoid interference between adjoining links, thereby permitting an increased range of motion and improved dexterity of the mechanism.

A computer workstation mounting device is provided which permits devices to be accessed by operators in a variety of positions including sitting, standing, or from a wheelchair. The invention permits said devices to be moved in a wide variety of vertical, horizontal, and rotational ranges of motion, and permits the devices to be moved clear of the work area while performing other tasks, or safely moved to a position near the ceiling for security or additional workspace conservation. The invention uses a simple, low maintenance counterweight principle for its vertical travel. It also possesses a simple tilt and swivel mechanism, swivel bracket (32), and dual parallelogram arm assembly for its horizontal and rotational ranges of motion. The invention also incorporates the counterweight principle for maintaining the data cables (14) in an organized, aesthetically pleasing manner without loops or kinks through all ranges of motion. Additionally provided is a friction lock (124) for stability of the monitor arm assembly in its vertical travel. Provision for the central processing unit (58) to be mounted atop the column (38) increases computer security.

A tilting, preferably three-wheeled, vehicle is disclosed that has a tilting mechanism that allows the vehicle to have leaning characteristics substantially similar to those offered by an in-line two-wheeled vehicle, but that does not require complex linkages and/or control systems to operate effectively. A tilting linkage is operably secured to a frame to allow a pair of spaced apart wheels to remain substantially aligned with the plane of the vehicle throughout its range of movement while still allowing the steering axes of each wheel to intersect the substantially vertical centerline of each wheel. The linkage also allows the caster angle of each wheel's pivot axis can be optimized independently of the angle of the vehicle's handlebar steering shaft.

A retractable step for use with a vehicle comprises a stepping member having a stepping deck, a first arm, a second arm, a motor and a stop. The first arm has a first end pivotally attached to the vehicle, and a second end pivotally attached to the stepping member. The second arm also has a first end pivotally attached to the vehicle, and a second end pivotally attached to the stepping member. The motor is drivingly connected to the first arm such that a rotation of the motor causes rotation of the first arm about its first end and moves the stepping member from a retracted position to an extended position, or vice versa. The stop is located within the range of motion of the second arm such that the second arm bears against the stop when the stepping member is in the extended position. The first and second arms are situated such that the first arm is loaded in compression and the second arm is loaded in tension when the stepping member is in the extended position and a load is placed upon it. In another embodiment, a retractable vehicle step assist comprises a rigid frame, a forward planar linkage pivotably connected to the frame along a forward upper connection width, and a rearward planar linkage pivotably connected to the frame along a rearward upper connection width. The retractable vehicle step further comprises a rigid step member having a stepping deck. The step member is pivotably connected to the forward planar linkage along a forward lower connection width, and is pivotably connected to the rearward planar linkage along a rearward lower connection width and on a side of the forward planar linkage opposite the stepping deck. The stepping deck is substantially wider than any of the forward upper connection width, the rearward upper connection width, the forward lower connection width, and the rearward lower connection width.

An improved mechanism for positioning loads of varying magnitudes, such as LCD displays, etc. The position of the load can be varied in height and angle according to the requirements of the user. The mechanism incorporates an adjustable sliding fulcrum, a support arm, a housing with four generally perpendicular channels, and a gas spring. The mechanism is initially manually adjusted for a particular load and then it automatically adjusts proportionally for the varying moments generated as the position of the load changes. The load is therefore evenly counterbalanced throughout its range of motion, and its position is maintained.

A sensing device is attached to a living subject that includes a first sensors for distinguishing lying, sitting, and standing positions. In another embodiment, sensor data is stored in a storage device as a function of time. Multiple points or multiple intervals of the time dependent data are used to direct a feedback mechanism to provide information or instruction in response to the time dependent output indicating too little activity, too much time with a joint not being moved beyond a specified range of motion, too many motions beyond a specified range of motion, or repetitive activity that can cause repetitive stress injury.

A compact, lightweight manipulation system that excels in operability and has a force feedback capability is provided.

When automatic operation of a slave manipulator105 that follows manual operation of a master manipulator 101 is bilaterally controlled by means of communication, the force acting on the slave manipulator is fed back to the master manipulator by operating the master manipulator primarily under electrically-driven speed control and the slave manipulator primarily under pneumatically-driven force control. Therefore, in the master manipulator, it is not necessary to compensate for the dynamics and the self-weight of the master manipulator in the motion range of a user, allowing highly accurate, broadband positional control, which is specific to an electrically-driven system, and in the slave manipulator, nonlinearity characteristics specific to a pneumatically-driven system presents passive softness, provides a high mass-to-output ratio, and produces a large force.

The present invention is a solar tracking system which utilizes three supports arranged in a generally tripod configuration. In one embodiment, two of the supports are linear actuators, and the third support is a stationary universally pivoting joint such as a ball and socket joint. The tracking system may include cross-supports for increased stability, a linear rail for additional range of motion, and a mounting base to facilitate installation. This solar tracking system offers a stable, cost-effective design which is also capable of moving the solar module into an optional stowed position.

A continuous passive motion apparatus for therapeutic treatment of the fingers of a patient's hand that includes a forearm hand splint. A drive unit is mounted on a palmer aspect of the splint and incorporates a motorized drive tube actuatable over a selectable range of motion. A flexion and extension assembly is connected to the tube and includes at least one finger motion assembly. The finger motion assembly is pivotally interconnected to a proximal end of the drive tube by a coupler adapted to enable movement in at least 2 degrees of freedom relative to the coupler. The coupler is further adapted to releasably engage the at least one finger motion assembly after adjustment to optimally accommodate the anatomical arrangement, size, and range and path of motion of the fingers. The finger motion assembly includes a resilient prime mover selected to be repeatedly bendable without damage but with a bend memory so that it can be adjusted to have an angle of up to about 90 degrees. In variations of the exemplary embodiment, the prime mover is interconnected to the coupler by at least one pivot ball received within the coupler and configured to move about multiple axes of motion. At least one finger splint is releasably connected to a distal end of the finger motion assembly and is adapted to receive a distal phalanx of the finger. The finger splint is preferably formed from a flexible sheet material that incorporates one or more stiffening, bend memory, and hypo-allergenic adhesive layers.

The invention provides a vehicle autonomous parking path programming method used for multiple parking scenes. The method is used for automatically parking a vehicle in a parking space through an autonomous parking system when the autonomous parking system detects the available parking space. The method includes the steps that target parking space information is detected, and a parking scene is determined; the initial state and target state of the to-be-parked vehicle are determined; a vehicle kinematics differential equation is established; state variables and control variables of the vehicle are segmented, equidistance sampling is performed on each segment according to certain time step, and to-be-optimized variables are obtained; an equality constraint, boundary constraints and inequality constraints of the to-be-optimized variables are formed; motion range constraints of the to-be-parked vehicle are formed according to the motion range limit in the parking process of the vehicle; an optimization objective is determined, and an objective function is established; and by means of a nonlinear programming solver, an optimal solution of a parking path is obtained. The vehicle autonomous parking path programming method is suitable for the multiple parking scenes, the design is reasonable, abundant information can be provided so as to control autonomous parking of the vehicle, and the security coefficient is high.

A delta robot has motor/gearing units, which are respectively assigned to an arm and which are disposed on one side each of a triangle. Each motor/gearing unit has a gearing, by virtue of material-locking and/or positive-locking connection of gearing components, is free from backlash over the whole of the motional range of the gearing, allowing virtually all aspects fundamental to the delta robot to be optimized, especially the rigidity, the control characteristics, the spatial requirement, the speed and the positioning accuracy.

In order to reduce the stresses occurring during the closing of a manually closable body component, e.g. a door, a method of controlling the closing movement is proposed in which,

• • during the closing movement, departing from an opened position, the body component passes through a first movement range in which the body component is moved towards the closed position without any action by a control member, and,
  • following the first movement range, the body component passes through a second movement range in which the closing movement of the body component is varied in such a manner by the action of the control member that the residual kinetic energy of the body component does not exceed a predetermined limit value after passing through the second movement range, irrespective of the initial speed.

The residual kinetic energy is not sufficient to close the body component automatically. The body component is therefore automatically drawn in a third movement range following the second movement range until a pre catch or main catch of a lock is reached.

The invention relates furthermore to a corresponding control device.

A system for controlling motion of a hydraulic actuator during a portion of its range of motion is described, including a sensor on the hydraulic actuator for providing a signal indicating that the actuator is near a portion of its range of motion, and a pneumatic control valve that is configured to selectively modify a pressurized air control signal to in turn restrict flow of pressurized hydraulic fluid to the hydraulic actuator. The hydraulic actuator control system further includes an electronic controller for controlling the pneumatic control valve in response to a signal from the sensor. The hydraulic actuator control system thereby slows the motion of the hydraulic actuator near the portion of its range of motion.

The invention discloses an elastically-driven modular joint with force feedback control. comprising assembly components such as a motor stator, a motor rotor, a harmonic speed reducer and the like, so that the design flexibility and compactedness of the joint can be increased; and due to the design of an air routing shaft, the joint is convenient to route, so that the joint is more succinct, the moving range of the joint can be preferably enlarged, and the running reliability of the joint can be improved. Due to the introduction of a first absolute type angle sensor and a second absolute type angle sensor, the angle deviation between an output shaft and an output end cover can be obtained, and the angle deviation is multiplied by the elasticity coefficient of an elastic torsion spring, so that a moment value applicable to the joint can be obtained, for an input feedback value of a joint signal; and a reliable moment feedback signal can be provided for the joint, so that the elastic torsion spring can be deformed, the smoothness can be provided for the joint, and an energy storing mechanism can be further provided for the joint, and the elastically-driven modular joint is applicable to a robot, so that the interaction capability between the robot and the environment can be enhanced, and the running efficiency of the robot can be improved.

A video generating apparatus comprises: an obtaining unit for obtaining an image in which a person has been taken; a human body recognizing unit recognizing a part of a human body of the person in the image; a holding unit for holding data concerning a basic video showing that the person exercises; a setting unit for setting a motion range of a specific part in the exercise of the person, on the basis of the recognized parts of the human body of the person; a video generating unit for generating, from the data concerning the basic video, a sample video for the person in the image on the basis of the motion range; and a display controlling unit for displaying the generated sample video on a displaying apparatus. Thus, it is possible to generate and show the sample video suitable for the person.

According to one exemplary embodiment of the present invention a steering column assembly is provided. The steering column assembly includes a steering column shaft. The steering column assembly further includes a retraction actuator to translate an adjustment actuator mounting plate within a retraction range. The steering column further includes an adjustment actuator mounted on the adjustment actuator mounting plate to translate a steering column bracket within an adjustment range. The steering column bracket translates the steering column shaft within a steering column shaft movement range. The steering column shaft movement range is a sum of the retraction range and the adjustment range.