Portable personal wearable active third arm

• US 20070059124A1
• Filed: 08/25/2005
• Published: 03/15/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 08/25/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Palo Alto Research Center, Inc. (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Palo Alto Research Center, Inc. (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Eldershaw, Craig, Duff, David
• Application Number:
  US11/210,841
• Publication Number:
  US 20070059124A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 414/1
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 9/06 characterised by multi-articulated arms
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 9/08 characterised by modular constructions

Abstract

A portable, wearable active appendage, including an arm having a base end and a working end, a docking plate that mechanically and electrically connects the base end to a mounting base, an end-effector mechanically connected to the working end, and a controller that controls movement. In various embodiments the arm is reversible, has multiple degrees of freedom of motion, the mounting base is attached to clothing worn by a human, and the controller can learn a movement and controls the movement to replicate a human arm or control a motion that is relative to a human operator. In various embodiments the end-effector is also removably, electrically connected to the working end of the arm such that it can be replaced with a different end-effector. Some embodiments include a node that branches the arm into a Y shape. Some embodiments include verbal and manual user interfaces, a remote operator and a feedback device. Some embodiments include a plurality of appendages that can merge or split acting in concert.

Claims

1. A portable, wearable active appendage, comprising:

an arm having a base end and a working end;

a docking plate that mechanically and electrically connects the base end of the arm to a mounting base;

an end-effector mechanically connected to the working end of the arm; and

a controller that controls movement of the arm and the end-effector.

2. The portable, wearable active appendage according to claim 1, wherein the arm has multiple degrees of freedom of motion.

3. The portable, wearable active appendage according to claim 1, wherein the docking plate includes a sensor that facilitates a mating of the docking plate and the mounting base.

4. The portable, wearable active appendage according to claim 1, wherein the mounting base is provided on a human wearer.

5. The portable, wearable active appendage according to claim 4, wherein the mounting base is attached to clothing worn by the human wearer.

6. The portable, wearable active appendage according to claim 1, wherein the end-effector is selected from the group consisting of a clamp, a probe, a camera, a light, a claw, a flashlight, a drill, a hook, and a soldering iron.

7. The portable, wearable active appendage according to claim 1, wherein the end-effector is electrically connected to the working end of the arm.

8. The portable, wearable active appendage according to claim 1, wherein the end-effecter is removably connected to the working end of the arm, and the end-effector can be replaced with a different end-effector.

9. The portable, wearable active appendage according to claim 1, further comprising a node having a plurality of docking plates that mechanically and electrically connect a first portion of the arm to a second portion of the arm and a third portion of the arm, the second portion of the arm and the third portion of the arm each having a working end.

10. The portable, wearable active appendage according to claim 1, wherein the controller controls the movement of the arm and the end-effector to replicate a movement of a human operator'"'"'s arm.

11. The portable, wearable active appendage according to claim 1, wherein the controller controls the movement of the arm and the end-effector to operate the arm and the end-effector in a motion that is relative to a human operator.

12. The portable, wearable active appendage according to claim 1, wherein the base end and the working end of the arm are interchangeable.

13. The portable, wearable active appendage according to claim 12, wherein the working end and the base end of the arm can reverse by the working end attaching to a second mounting base and the base end disattaching from the mounting base.

14. The portable, wearable active appendage according to claim 1, further comprising a verbal user interface that provides control information to the controller.

15. The portable, wearable active appendage according to claim 1, further comprising a manual user interface that provides control information to the controller.

16. The portable, wearable active appendage according to claim 1, wherein a remote human user provides control information to the controller.

17. The portable, wearable active appendage according to claim 1, further comprising a feedback device that provides feedback to a human operator regarding the movement of the arm and the end-effector.

18. The portable, wearable active appendage according to claim 1, wherein the controller is capable of learning a movement performed by the arm and the end-effector and capable of memorizing that movement such that the controller can repeat the movement.

19. A plurality of portable, wearable active appendages, each of the portable, wearable active appendages comprising:

an arm having a base end and a working end;

a docking plate that mechanically and electrically connects the base end of the arm to a mounting base;

an end-effector mechanically connected to the working end of the arm; and

a controller that controls movement of the arm and the end-effector,

wherein each of the plurality of portable, wearable active appendages operates in connection with one or more of other ones of the plurality of portable, wearable active appendages.

20. The plurality of portable, wearable active appendages according to claim 19, wherein two or more of the plurality of portable, wearable active appendages can merge into a single appendage, and one of the plurality of portable wearable active appendages can split into two or more portable, wearable active appendages.