Double loop control strategy with different time steps based on human characteristics

This paper proposes a cooperative control strategy in consideration of the force sensitivity of human. The strategy consists of two loops: one is the intention estimation loop whose sampling time can be variable in order to investigate the effect of the sampling time; the other is the position control loop with fixed time step. A high sampling rate is not necessary for the intention estimation loop due to the bandwidth of the mechanoreceptors in humans. In addition, the force sensor implemented in the robot is sensitive to the noise induced from the sensor itself and tremor of the human. Multiple experiments were performed with the experimental protocol using various time steps of the intention estimation loop to find the suitable sampling times in physical human robot interaction. The task involves pull-and-push movement with a two-degree-of-freedom robot, and the norm of the interaction force was obtained for each experiment as the measure of the cooperative control performance.