Session: Government Agency Student Posters

Paper Number: 172734

Position and Force Control for a Tendon Driven Scrubbing Robot for Surface Cleaning 

Pathogens, such as bacteria and viruses, cause roughly 30 million cases of foodborne illness each year [1]. Additionally, the Worldwide Cleaning Industry Association (ISSA) reports that pathogens commonly spread by landing on surfaces in the home, where they can live anywhere from one to seven days [2]. The manual scrubbing and cleaning of surfaces to remove contaminants can reduce the spread of illness, but can be labor-intensive [3]. Automation of scrubbing with robots presents an opportunity to reduce the amount of manual labor. Cleaning workers also experience injuries at twice the rate of workers in other occupations [3]. Additionally, this research aims to address scrubbing on soft, delicate, or curved surfaces. Force control is necessary to minimize damage, such as rips and tears, while still providing sufficient force to remove stains.

This research presents a robot designed to track and output desired forces and movement. The robotic device consists of a two-link arm, which can scrub 0.5 meters in approximately one second. Two DC motors with encoders drive the robot links via elastic cables. The elasticity embedded physically in the system aims to reduce the load on active control. The scrubbing tool attached to the robotic arm's end can freely rotate in a plane parallel to the surface being cleaned. A software algorithm controls the positions of the armature links, while an embedded inverse kinematics formula allows the robot to reach an arbitrary end effector position. Additionally, a force control algorithm helps the robot maintain consistent scrubbing output while it moves along a surface via a force-sensing load cell. The robot can output a maximum downward force of approximately 12 newtons orthogonal to the cleaning surface [4].

The purpose of this robot design is to be an experimental platform to better understand the mechanics of scrubbing. When considering the case of removal via dry scrubbing, the goal is to utilize frictional forces via a device (sponge, brush, etc.) to physically clean the contaminants from the surface, thus overcoming the adhesion forces between the contaminant and the surface. However, when cleaning a delicate surface (such as human skin), force beyond the minimum required to clean risks the chance of surface damage.

An automated scrubbing mechanism would be beneficial to address the growing need for sanitization in various settings, from personal to commercial use. Particularly, the compliant mechanisms in this design represent an opportunity for better treatment of fragile surfaces without damage, such as cleaning human skin without bruising in a hospital setting.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

[1] E. Scallan et al., “Foodborne Illness Acquired in the United States—Major Pathogens,” Emerg Infect Dis

[2] D. G. Macgregor-Skinner et al., “Surface Contamination,” ISSA | The Worldwide Cleaning Industry Association.

[3] J.-H. Lin, et al., “Cleaning in the 21st Century: The musculoskeletal disorders associated with the centuries-old occupation – A literature review,” Applied Ergonomics

[4] N. Harmatz, “An elastic robotic platform with tendon-driven actuation for scrubbing and cleaning,” Rutgers University – New Brunswick, School of Graduate Studies, 2024.

[5] CDC, “When and How to Clean and Disinfect Your Home,” Water, Sanitation, and Environmentally Related Hygiene (WASH).

Presenting Author: Antonio Bu Sha Rutgers University - New Brunswick

Presenting Author Biography: Antonio Bu Sha is a PhD student in the Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Department at Rutgers University – New Brunswick, conducting research on the design of a scrubbing robot to study cleaning of compliant surfaces. He is currently an NSF-supported fellow through the Rutgers Socially Cognizant Robotics for a Technologically Enhanced Society (SOCRATES) National Research Traineeship (NRT) program. He was previously awarded a Rutgers University School of Graduate Studies Dean’s Fellowship and a GEM University Fellowship.
Antonio is a member of Dr. Aaron Mazzeo’s Laboratory for Machines, Manufacturing, and Mechatronics. He joined the group during his undergraduate studies, as a James J. Slade Scholar in Mechanical Engineering. He completed two internships with John Deere, and most recently, was a robotics R&D intern with Stryker.

Authors:

Antonio Bu Sha Rutgers University - New Brunswick
Kanika Syal Rutgers University - New Brunswick
Noah Harmatz Rutgers University - New Brunswick
Trevor Shin Rutgers University - New Brunswick
Aaron Mazzeo Rutgers University