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171 results (View BibTeX file of all listed publications)

2017

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Soft Actuators for Small-Scale Robotics

Hines, L., Petersen, K., Lum, G. Z., Sitti, M.

Advanced Materials, 2017 (article)

Abstract
This review comprises a detailed survey of ongoing methodologies for soft actuators, highlighting approaches suitable for nanometer- to centimeter-scale robotic applications. Soft robots present a special design challenge in that their actuation and sensing mechanisms are often highly integrated with the robot body and overall functionality. When less than a centimeter, they belong to an even more special subcategory of robots or devices, in that they often lack on-board power, sensing, computation, and control. Soft, active materials are particularly well suited for this task, with a wide range of stimulants and a number of impressive examples, demonstrating large deformations, high motion complexities, and varied multifunctionality. Recent research includes both the development of new materials and composites, as well as novel implementations leveraging the unique properties of soft materials.

pi

DOI [BibTex]

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Active colloidal propulsion over a crystalline surface

Choudhury, U., Straube, A., Fischer, P., Gibbs, J., Höfling, F.

New Journal of Physics, 19, pages: 125010, December 2017 (article)

Abstract
We study both experimentally and theoretically the dynamics of chemically self-propelled Janus colloids moving atop a two-dimensional crystalline surface. The surface is a hexagonally close-packed monolayer of colloidal particles of the same size as the mobile one. The dynamics of the self-propelled colloid reflects the competition between hindered diffusion due to the periodic surface and enhanced diffusion due to active motion. Which contribution dominates depends on the propulsion strength, which can be systematically tuned by changing the concentration of a chemical fuel. The mean-square displacements obtained from the experiment exhibit enhanced diffusion at long lag times. Our experimental data are consistent with a Langevin model for the effectively two-dimensional translational motion of an active Brownian particle in a periodic potential, combining the confining effects of gravity and the crystalline surface with the free rotational diffusion of the colloid. Approximate analytical predictions are made for the mean-square displacement describing the crossover from free Brownian motion at short times to active diffusion at long times. The results are in semi-quantitative agreement with numerical results of a refined Langevin model that treats translational and rotational degrees of freedom on the same footing.

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link (url) DOI [BibTex]

pf Choudhury, U., Straube, A., Fischer, P., Gibbs, J., Höfling, F. Active colloidal propulsion over a crystalline surface New Journal of Physics, 19, pages: 125010, December 2017 (article)

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

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A deep learning based fusion of RGB camera information and magnetic localization information for endoscopic capsule robots

Turan, M., Shabbir, J., Araujo, H., Konukoglu, E., Sitti, M.

International Journal of Intelligent Robotics and Applications, 1(4):442-450, December 2017 (article)

Abstract
A reliable, real time localization functionality is crutial for actively controlled capsule endoscopy robots, which are an emerging, minimally invasive diagnostic and therapeutic technology for the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. In this study, we extend the success of deep learning approaches from various research fields to the problem of sensor fusion for endoscopic capsule robots. We propose a multi-sensor fusion based localization approach which combines endoscopic camera information and magnetic sensor based localization information. The results performed on real pig stomach dataset show that our method achieves sub-millimeter precision for both translational and rotational movements.

pi

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

pi Turan, M., Shabbir, J., Araujo, H., Konukoglu, E., Sitti, M. A deep learning based fusion of RGB camera information and magnetic localization information for endoscopic capsule robots International Journal of Intelligent Robotics and Applications, 1(4):442-450, December 2017 (article)

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

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Evaluation of High-Fidelity Simulation as a Training Tool in Transoral Robotic Surgery

Bur, A. M., Gomez, E. D., Newman, J. G., Weinstein, G. S., Bert W. O’Malley, J., Rassekh, C. H., Kuchenbecker, K. J.

Laryngoscope, 127(12):2790-2795, December 2017 (article)

hi

DOI [BibTex]

hi Bur, A. M., Gomez, E. D., Newman, J. G., Weinstein, G. S., Bert W. O’Malley, J., Rassekh, C. H., Kuchenbecker, K. J. Evaluation of High-Fidelity Simulation as a Training Tool in Transoral Robotic Surgery Laryngoscope, 127(12):2790-2795, December 2017 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

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Interactive Perception: Leveraging Action in Perception and Perception in Action

Bohg, J., Hausman, K., Sankaran, B., Brock, O., Kragic, D., Schaal, S., Sukhatme, G.

IEEE Transactions on Robotics, 33, pages: 1273-1291, December 2017 (article)

Abstract
Recent approaches in robotics follow the insight that perception is facilitated by interactivity with the environment. These approaches are subsumed under the term of Interactive Perception (IP). We argue that IP provides the following benefits: (i) any type of forceful interaction with the environment creates a new type of informative sensory signal that would otherwise not be present and (ii) any prior knowledge about the nature of the interaction supports the interpretation of the signal. This is facilitated by knowledge of the regularity in the combined space of sensory information and action parameters. The goal of this survey is to postulate this as a principle and collect evidence in support by analyzing and categorizing existing work in this area. We also provide an overview of the most important applications of Interactive Perception. We close this survey by discussing the remaining open questions. Thereby, we hope to define a field and inspire future work.

am

arXiv DOI Project Page [BibTex]

am Bohg, J., Hausman, K., Sankaran, B., Brock, O., Kragic, D., Schaal, S., Sukhatme, G. Interactive Perception: Leveraging Action in Perception and Perception in Action IEEE Transactions on Robotics, 33, pages: 1273-1291, December 2017 (article)

arXiv DOI Project Page [BibTex]

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3D Chemical Patterning of Micromaterials for Encoded Functionality

Ceylan, H., Yasa, I. C., Sitti, M.

Advanced Materials, 2017 (article)

Abstract
Programming local chemical properties of microscale soft materials with 3D complex shapes is indispensable for creating sophisticated functionalities, which has not yet been possible with existing methods. Precise spatiotemporal control of two-photon crosslinking is employed as an enabling tool for 3D patterning of microprinted structures for encoding versatile chemical moieties.

pi

DOI Project Page [BibTex]

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Biohybrid actuators for robotics: A review of devices actuated by living cells

Ricotti, L., Trimmer, B., Feinberg, A. W., Raman, R., Parker, K. K., Bashir, R., Sitti, M., Martel, S., Dario, P., Menciassi, A.

Science Robotics, 2(12), Science Robotics, November 2017 (article)

Abstract
Actuation is essential for artificial machines to interact with their surrounding environment and to accomplish the functions for which they are designed. Over the past few decades, there has been considerable progress in developing new actuation technologies. However, controlled motion still represents a considerable bottleneck for many applications and hampers the development of advanced robots, especially at small length scales. Nature has solved this problem using molecular motors that, through living cells, are assembled into multiscale ensembles with integrated control systems. These systems can scale force production from piconewtons up to kilonewtons. By leveraging the performance of living cells and tissues and directly interfacing them with artificial components, it should be possible to exploit the intricacy and metabolic efficiency of biological actuation within artificial machines. We provide a survey of important advances in this biohybrid actuation paradigm.

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link (url) DOI [BibTex]

pi Ricotti, L., Trimmer, B., Feinberg, A. W., Raman, R., Parker, K. K., Bashir, R., Sitti, M., Martel, S., Dario, P., Menciassi, A. Biohybrid actuators for robotics: A review of devices actuated by living cells Science Robotics, 2(12), Science Robotics, November 2017 (article)

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

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Wireless Acoustic-Surface Actuators for Miniaturized Endoscopes

Qiu, T., Adams, F., Palagi, S., Melde, K., Mark, A. G., Wetterauer, U., Miernik, A., Fischer, P.

ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 9(49):42536 - 42543, November 2017 (article)

Abstract
Endoscopy enables minimally invasive procedures in many medical fields, such as urology. However, current endoscopes are normally cable-driven, which limits their dexterity and makes them hard to miniaturize. Indeed current urological endoscopes have an outer diameter of about 3 mm and still only possess one bending degree of freedom. In this paper, we report a novel wireless actuation mechanism that increases the dexterity and that permits the miniaturization of a urological endoscope. The novel actuator consists of thin active surfaces that can be readily attached to any device and are wirelessly powered by ultrasound. The surfaces consist of two-dimensional arrays of micro-bubbles, which oscillate under ultrasound excitation and thereby generate an acoustic streaming force. Bubbles of different sizes are addressed by their unique resonance frequency, thus multiple degrees of freedom can readily be incorporated. Two active miniaturized devices (with a side length of around 1 mm) are demonstrated: a miniaturized mechanical arm that realizes two degrees of freedom, and a flexible endoscope prototype equipped with a camera at the tip. With the flexible endoscope, an active endoscopic examination is successfully performed in a rabbit bladder. This results show the potential medical applicability of surface actuators wirelessly powered by ultrasound penetrating through biological tissues.

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link (url) DOI Project Page [BibTex]

pf Qiu, T., Adams, F., Palagi, S., Melde, K., Mark, A. G., Wetterauer, U., Miernik, A., Fischer, P. Wireless Acoustic-Surface Actuators for Miniaturized Endoscopes ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 9(49):42536 - 42543, November 2017 (article)

link (url) DOI Project Page [BibTex]

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Probabilistic Line Searches for Stochastic Optimization

Mahsereci, M., Hennig, P.

Journal of Machine Learning Research, 18(119):1-59, November 2017 (article)

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link (url) Project Page [BibTex]

pn Mahsereci, M., Hennig, P. Probabilistic Line Searches for Stochastic Optimization Journal of Machine Learning Research, 18(119):1-59, November 2017 (article)

link (url) Project Page [BibTex]

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Learning a model of facial shape and expression from 4D scans

Li, T., Bolkart, T., Black, M. J., Li, H., Romero, J.

ACM Transactions on Graphics, 36(6):194:1-194:17, November 2017, Two first authors contributed equally (article)

Abstract
The field of 3D face modeling has a large gap between high-end and low-end methods. At the high end, the best facial animation is indistinguishable from real humans, but this comes at the cost of extensive manual labor. At the low end, face capture from consumer depth sensors relies on 3D face models that are not expressive enough to capture the variability in natural facial shape and expression. We seek a middle ground by learning a facial model from thousands of accurately aligned 3D scans. Our FLAME model (Faces Learned with an Articulated Model and Expressions) is designed to work with existing graphics software and be easy to fit to data. FLAME uses a linear shape space trained from 3800 scans of human heads. FLAME combines this linear shape space with an articulated jaw, neck, and eyeballs, pose-dependent corrective blendshapes, and additional global expression from 4D face sequences in the D3DFACS dataset along with additional 4D sequences.We accurately register a template mesh to the scan sequences and make the D3DFACS registrations available for research purposes. In total the model is trained from over 33, 000 scans. FLAME is low-dimensional but more expressive than the FaceWarehouse model and the Basel Face Model. We compare FLAME to these models by fitting them to static 3D scans and 4D sequences using the same optimization method. FLAME is significantly more accurate and is available for research purposes (http://flame.is.tue.mpg.de).

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data/model video code chumpy code tensorflow paper supplemental Project Page [BibTex]

ps Li, T., Bolkart, T., Black, M. J., Li, H., Romero, J. Learning a model of facial shape and expression from 4D scans ACM Transactions on Graphics, 36(6):194:1-194:17, November 2017, Two first authors contributed equally (article)

data/model video code chumpy code tensorflow paper supplemental Project Page [BibTex]

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Acquiring Target Stacking Skills by Goal-Parameterized Deep Reinforcement Learning

Li, W., Bohg, J., Fritz, M.

arXiv, November 2017 (article) Submitted

Abstract
Understanding physical phenomena is a key component of human intelligence and enables physical interaction with previously unseen environments. In this paper, we study how an artificial agent can autonomously acquire this intuition through interaction with the environment. We created a synthetic block stacking environment with physics simulation in which the agent can learn a policy end-to-end through trial and error. Thereby, we bypass to explicitly model physical knowledge within the policy. We are specifically interested in tasks that require the agent to reach a given goal state that may be different for every new trial. To this end, we propose a deep reinforcement learning framework that learns policies which are parametrized by a goal. We validated the model on a toy example navigating in a grid world with different target positions and in a block stacking task with different target structures of the final tower. In contrast to prior work, our policies show better generalization across different goals.

am

arXiv [BibTex]

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Investigating Body Image Disturbance in Anorexia Nervosa Using Novel Biometric Figure Rating Scales: A Pilot Study

Mölbert, S. C., Thaler, A., Streuber, S., Black, M. J., Karnath, H., Zipfel, S., Mohler, B., Giel, K. E.

European Eating Disorders Review, 25(6):607-612, November 2017 (article)

Abstract
This study uses novel biometric figure rating scales (FRS) spanning body mass index (BMI) 13.8 to 32.2 kg/m2 and BMI 18 to 42 kg/m2. The aims of the study were (i) to compare FRS body weight dissatisfaction and perceptual distortion of women with anorexia nervosa (AN) to a community sample; (ii) how FRS parameters are associated with questionnaire body dissatisfaction, eating disorder symptoms and appearance comparison habits; and (iii) whether the weight spectrum of the FRS matters. Women with AN (n = 24) and a community sample of women (n = 104) selected their current and ideal body on the FRS and completed additional questionnaires. Women with AN accurately picked the body that aligned best with their actual weight in both FRS. Controls underestimated their BMI in the FRS 14–32 and were accurate in the FRS 18–42. In both FRS, women with AN desired a body close to their actual BMI and controls desired a thinner body. Our observations suggest that body image disturbance in AN is unlikely to be characterized by a visual perceptual disturbance, but rather by an idealization of underweight in conjunction with high body dissatisfaction. The weight spectrum of FRS can influence the accuracy of BMI estimation.

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publisher DOI Project Page [BibTex]

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Embodied Hands: Modeling and Capturing Hands and Bodies Together

Romero, J., Tzionas, D., Black, M. J.

ACM Transactions on Graphics, (Proc. SIGGRAPH Asia), 36(6):245:1-245:17, 245:1–245:17, ACM, November 2017 (article)

Abstract
Humans move their hands and bodies together to communicate and solve tasks. Capturing and replicating such coordinated activity is critical for virtual characters that behave realistically. Surprisingly, most methods treat the 3D modeling and tracking of bodies and hands separately. Here we formulate a model of hands and bodies interacting together and fit it to full-body 4D sequences. When scanning or capturing the full body in 3D, hands are small and often partially occluded, making their shape and pose hard to recover. To cope with low-resolution, occlusion, and noise, we develop a new model called MANO (hand Model with Articulated and Non-rigid defOrmations). MANO is learned from around 1000 high-resolution 3D scans of hands of 31 subjects in a wide variety of hand poses. The model is realistic, low-dimensional, captures non-rigid shape changes with pose, is compatible with standard graphics packages, and can fit any human hand. MANO provides a compact mapping from hand poses to pose blend shape corrections and a linear manifold of pose synergies. We attach MANO to a standard parameterized 3D body shape model (SMPL), resulting in a fully articulated body and hand model (SMPL+H). We illustrate SMPL+H by fitting complex, natural, activities of subjects captured with a 4D scanner. The fitting is fully automatic and results in full body models that move naturally with detailed hand motions and a realism not seen before in full body performance capture. The models and data are freely available for research purposes at http://mano.is.tue.mpg.de.

ps

website youtube paper suppl video link (url) DOI Project Page [BibTex]

ps Romero, J., Tzionas, D., Black, M. J. Embodied Hands: Modeling and Capturing Hands and Bodies Together ACM Transactions on Graphics, (Proc. SIGGRAPH Asia), 36(6):245:1-245:17, 245:1–245:17, ACM, November 2017 (article)

website youtube paper suppl video link (url) DOI Project Page [BibTex]

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An Online Scalable Approach to Unified Multirobot Cooperative Localization and Object Tracking

Ahmad, A., Lawless, G., Lima, P.

IEEE Transactions on Robotics (T-RO), 33, pages: 1184 - 1199, October 2017 (article)

Abstract
In this article we present a unified approach for multi-robot cooperative simultaneous localization and object tracking based on particle filters. Our approach is scalable with respect to the number of robots in the team. We introduce a method that reduces, from an exponential to a linear growth, the space and computation time requirements with respect to the number of robots in order to maintain a given level of accuracy in the full state estimation. Our method requires no increase in the number of particles with respect to the number of robots. However, in our method each particle represents a full state hypothesis, leading to the linear dependency on the number of robots of both space and time complexity. The derivation of the algorithm implementing our approach from a standard particle filter algorithm and its complexity analysis are presented. Through an extensive set of simulation experiments on a large number of randomized datasets, we demonstrate the correctness and efficacy of our approach. Through real robot experiments on a standardized open dataset of a team of four soccer playing robots tracking a ball, we evaluate our method's estimation accuracy with respect to the ground truth values. Through comparisons with other methods based on i) nonlinear least squares minimization and ii) joint extended Kalman filter, we further highlight our method's advantages. Finally, we also present a robustness test for our approach by evaluating it under scenarios of communication and vision failure in teammate robots.

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Published Version link (url) DOI [BibTex]

ps Ahmad, A., Lawless, G., Lima, P. An Online Scalable Approach to Unified Multirobot Cooperative Localization and Object Tracking IEEE Transactions on Robotics (T-RO), 33, pages: 1184 - 1199, October 2017 (article)

Published Version link (url) DOI [BibTex]

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Generalized exploration in policy search

van Hoof, H., Tanneberg, D., Peters, J.

Machine Learning, 106(9-10):1705-1724 , (Editors: Kurt Driessens, Dragi Kocev, Marko Robnik‐Sikonja, and Myra Spiliopoulou), October 2017, Special Issue of the ECML PKDD 2017 Journal Track (article)

ei

DOI Project Page [BibTex]

ei van Hoof, H., Tanneberg, D., Peters, J. Generalized exploration in policy search Machine Learning, 106(9-10):1705-1724 , (Editors: Kurt Driessens, Dragi Kocev, Marko Robnik‐Sikonja, and Myra Spiliopoulou), October 2017, Special Issue of the ECML PKDD 2017 Journal Track (article)

DOI Project Page [BibTex]

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Probabilistic Prioritization of Movement Primitives

Paraschos, A., Lioutikov, R., Peters, J., Neumann, G.

Proceedings of the International Conference on Intelligent Robot Systems, and IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters (RA-L), 2(4):2294-2301, October 2017 (article)

ei

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

ei Paraschos, A., Lioutikov, R., Peters, J., Neumann, G. Probabilistic Prioritization of Movement Primitives Proceedings of the International Conference on Intelligent Robot Systems, and IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters (RA-L), 2(4):2294-2301, October 2017 (article)

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

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Editorial for the Special Issue on Microdevices and Microsystems for Cell Manipulation

Hu, W., Ohta, A. T.

8, Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute, September 2017 (misc)

pi

DOI [BibTex]

pi Hu, W., Ohta, A. T. Editorial for the Special Issue on Microdevices and Microsystems for Cell Manipulation 8, Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute, September 2017 (misc)

DOI [BibTex]

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Multifunctional Bacteria-Driven Microswimmers for Targeted Active Drug Delivery

Park, B., Zhuang, J., Yasa, O., Sitti, M.

ACS Nano, 11(9):8910-8923, September 2017, PMID: 28873304 (article)

Abstract
High-performance, multifunctional bacteria-driven microswimmers are introduced using an optimized design and fabrication method for targeted drug delivery applications. These microswimmers are made of mostly single Escherichia coli bacterium attached to the surface of drug-loaded polyelectrolyte multilayer (PEM) microparticles with embedded magnetic nanoparticles. The PEM drug carriers are 1 μm in diameter and are intentionally fabricated with a more viscoelastic material than the particles previously studied in the literature. The resulting stochastic microswimmers are able to swim at mean speeds of up to 22.5 μm/s. They can be guided and targeted to specific cells, because they exhibit biased and directional motion under a chemoattractant gradient and a magnetic field, respectively. Moreover, we demonstrate the microswimmers delivering doxorubicin anticancer drug molecules, encapsulated in the polyelectrolyte multilayers, to 4T1 breast cancer cells under magnetic guidance in vitro. The results reveal the feasibility of using these active multifunctional bacteria-driven microswimmers to perform targeted drug delivery with significantly enhanced drug transfer, when compared with the passive PEM microparticles.

pi

link (url) DOI Project Page [BibTex]

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Active Acoustic Surfaces Enable the Propulsion of a Wireless Robot

Qiu, T., Palagi, S., Mark, A. G., Melde, K., Adams, F., Fischer, P.

Advanced Materials Interfaces, 4(21):1700933, September 2017 (article)

Abstract
A major challenge that prevents the miniaturization of mechanically actuated systems is the lack of suitable methods that permit the efficient transfer of power to small scales. Acoustic energy holds great potential, as it is wireless, penetrates deep into biological tissues, and the mechanical vibrations can be directly converted into directional forces. Recently, active acoustic surfaces are developed that consist of 2D arrays of microcavities holding microbubbles that can be excited with an external acoustic field. At resonance, the surfaces give rise to acoustic streaming and thus provide a highly directional propulsive force. Here, this study advances these wireless surface actuators by studying their force output as the size of the bubble-array is increased. In particular, a general method is reported to dramatically improve the propulsive force, demonstrating that the surface actuators are actually able to propel centimeter-scale devices. To prove the flexibility of the functional surfaces as wireless ready-to-attach actuator, a mobile mini-robot capable of propulsion in water along multiple directions is presented. This work paves the way toward effectively exploiting acoustic surfaces as a novel wireless actuation scheme at small scales.

pf

link (url) DOI Project Page [BibTex]

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EndoSensorFusion: Particle Filtering-Based Multi-sensory Data Fusion with Switching State-Space Model for Endoscopic Capsule Robots

Turan, M., Almalioglu, Y., Gilbert, H., Araujo, H., Cemgil, T., Sitti, M.

ArXiv e-prints, September 2017 (article)

Abstract
A reliable, real time multi-sensor fusion functionality is crucial for localization of actively controlled capsule endoscopy robots, which are an emerging, minimally invasive diagnostic and therapeutic technology for the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. In this study, we propose a novel multi-sensor fusion approach based on a particle filter that incorporates an online estimation of sensor reliability and a non-linear kinematic model learned by a recurrent neural network. Our method sequentially estimates the true robot pose from noisy pose observations delivered by multiple sensors. We experimentally test the method using 5 degree-of-freedom (5-DoF) absolute pose measurement by a magnetic localization system and a 6-DoF relative pose measurement by visual odometry. In addition, the proposed method is capable of detecting and handling sensor failures by ignoring corrupted data, providing the robustness expected of a medical device. Detailed analyses and evaluations are presented using ex-vivo experiments on a porcine stomach model prove that our system achieves high translational and rotational accuracies for different types of endoscopic capsule robot trajectories.

pi

link (url) Project Page [BibTex]

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Endo-VMFuseNet: Deep Visual-Magnetic Sensor Fusion Approach for Uncalibrated, Unsynchronized and Asymmetric Endoscopic Capsule Robot Localization Data

Turan, M., Almalioglu, Y., Gilbert, H., Eren Sari, A., Soylu, U., Sitti, M.

ArXiv e-prints, September 2017 (article)

Abstract
In the last decade, researchers and medical device companies have made major advances towards transforming passive capsule endoscopes into active medical robots. One of the major challenges is to endow capsule robots with accurate perception of the environment inside the human body, which will provide necessary information and enable improved medical procedures. We extend the success of deep learning approaches from various research fields to the problem of uncalibrated, asynchronous, and asymmetric sensor fusion for endoscopic capsule robots. The results performed on real pig stomach datasets show that our method achieves sub-millimeter precision for both translational and rotational movements and contains various advantages over traditional sensor fusion techniques.

pi

link (url) Project Page [BibTex]

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Magnetotactic Bacteria Powered Biohybrids Target E. coli Biofilms

Stanton, M. M., Park, B., Vilela, D., Bente, K., Faivre, D., Sitti, M., Sánchez, S.

ACS Nano, 0(0):null, September 2017, PMID: 28933815 (article)

Abstract
Biofilm colonies are typically resistant to general antibiotic treatment and require targeted methods for their removal. One of these methods includes the use of nanoparticles as carriers for antibiotic delivery, where they randomly circulate in fluid until they make contact with the infected areas. However, the required proximity of the particles to the biofilm results in only moderate efficacy. We demonstrate here that the nonpathogenic magnetotactic bacteria Magnetosopirrillum gryphiswalense (MSR-1) can be integrated with drug-loaded mesoporous silica microtubes to build controllable microswimmers (biohybrids) capable of antibiotic delivery to target an infectious biofilm. Applying external magnetic guidance capability and swimming power of the MSR-1 cells, the biohybrids are directed to and forcefully pushed into matured Escherichia coli (E. coli) biofilms. Release of the antibiotic, ciprofloxacin, is triggered by the acidic microenvironment of the biofilm, ensuring an efficient drug delivery system. The results reveal the capabilities of a nonpathogenic bacteria species to target and dismantle harmful biofilms, indicating biohybrid systems have great potential for antibiofilm applications.

pi

link (url) DOI Project Page [BibTex]

pi Stanton, M. M., Park, B., Vilela, D., Bente, K., Faivre, D., Sitti, M., Sánchez, S. Magnetotactic Bacteria Powered Biohybrids Target E. coli Biofilms ACS Nano, 0(0):null, September 2017, PMID: 28933815 (article)

link (url) DOI Project Page [BibTex]

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Corrosion-Protected Hybrid Nanoparticles

Jeong, H. H., Alarcon-Correa, M., Mark, A. G., Son, K., Lee, T., Fischer, P.

Advanced Science, 4(12):1700234, September 2017 (article)

Abstract
Nanoparticles composed of functional materials hold great promise for applications due to their unique electronic, optical, magnetic, and catalytic properties. However, a number of functional materials are not only difficult to fabricate at the nanoscale, but are also chemically unstable in solution. Hence, protecting nanoparticles from corrosion is a major challenge for those applications that require stability in aqueous solutions and biological fluids. Here, this study presents a generic scheme to grow hybrid 3D nanoparticles that are completely encapsulated by a nm thick protective shell. The method consists of vacuum-based growth and protection, and combines oblique physical vapor deposition with atomic layer deposition. It provides wide flexibility in the shape and composition of the nanoparticles, and the environments against which particles are protected. The work demonstrates the approach with multifunctional nanoparticles possessing ferromagnetic, plasmonic, and chiral properties. The present scheme allows nanocolloids, which immediately corrode without protection, to remain functional, at least for a week, in acidic solutions.

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link (url) DOI [BibTex]

pf Jeong, H. H., Alarcon-Correa, M., Mark, A. G., Son, K., Lee, T., Fischer, P. Corrosion-Protected Hybrid Nanoparticles Advanced Science, 4(12):1700234, September 2017 (article)

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

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Undulatory Swimming Performance and Body Stiffness Modulation in a Soft Robotic Fish-Inspired Physical Model

Ardian Jusufi, D. M. V. R. J. W. G. V. L.

Soft Robotics, September 2017 (article)

Abstract
Undulatory motion of the body is the dominant mode of locomotion in fishes, and numerous studies of body kinematics and muscle activity patterns have provided insights into the mechanics of swimming. However, it has not been possible to investigate how key parameters such as the extent of bilateral muscle activation affect propulsive performance due to the inability to manipulate muscle activation in live, freely swimming fishes. In this article we extend previous work on passive flexible mechanical models of undulatory propulsion by using actively controlled pneumatic actuators attached to a flexible foil to gain insight into undulatory locomotion and mechanisms for body stiffness control. Two soft actuators were attached on each side of a flexible panel with stiffness comparable to that of a fish body. To study how bilateral contraction can be used to modify axial body stiffness during swimming, we ran a parameter sweep of actuator contraction phasing and frequency. Thrust production by the soft pneumatic actuators was tested at cyclic undulation frequencies ranging from 0.3 to 1.2 Hz in a recirculating flow tank at flow speeds up to 28 cm/s. Overall, this system generated more thrust at higher tail beat frequencies, with a plateau in thrust above 0.8 Hz. Self-propelled speed was found to be 0.8 foil lengths per second or ∼13 cm/s when actuated at 0.55 Hz. This active pneumatic model is capable of producing substantial trailing edge amplitudes with a maximum excursion equivalent to 1.4 foil lengths, and of generating considerable thrust. Altering the extent of bilateral co-contraction in a range from −22% to 17% of the cycle period showed that thrust was maximized with some amount of simultaneous left-right actuation of ∼3% to 6% of the cycle period. When the system is exposed to water flow, thrust was substantially reduced for conditions of greatest antagonistic overlap in left-right actuation, and also for the largest latencies introduced. This experimental platform provides a soft robotic testbed for studying aquatic propulsion with active control of undulatory kinematics.

[BibTex]

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Using Contact Forces and Robot Arm Accelerations to Automatically Rate Surgeon Skill at Peg Transfer

Brown, J. D., O’Brien, C. E., Leung, S. C., Dumon, K. R., Lee, D. I., Kuchenbecker, K. J.

IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, 64(9):2263-2275, September 2017 (article)

hi

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

hi Brown, J. D., O’Brien, C. E., Leung, S. C., Dumon, K. R., Lee, D. I., Kuchenbecker, K. J. Using Contact Forces and Robot Arm Accelerations to Automatically Rate Surgeon Skill at Peg Transfer IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, 64(9):2263-2275, September 2017 (article)

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

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Sparse-then-Dense Alignment based 3D Map Reconstruction Method for Endoscopic Capsule Robots

Turan, M., Yigit Pilavci, Y., Ganiyusufoglu, I., Araujo, H., Konukoglu, E., Sitti, M.

ArXiv e-prints, August 2017 (article)

Abstract
Since the development of capsule endoscopcy technology, substantial progress were made in converting passive capsule endoscopes to robotic active capsule endoscopes which can be controlled by the doctor. However, robotic capsule endoscopy still has some challenges. In particular, the use of such devices to generate a precise and globally consistent three-dimensional (3D) map of the entire inner organ remains an unsolved problem. Such global 3D maps of inner organs would help doctors to detect the location and size of diseased areas more accurately, precisely, and intuitively, thus permitting more accurate and intuitive diagnoses. The proposed 3D reconstruction system is built in a modular fashion including preprocessing, frame stitching, and shading-based 3D reconstruction modules. We propose an efficient scheme to automatically select the key frames out of the huge quantity of raw endoscopic images. Together with a bundle fusion approach that aligns all the selected key frames jointly in a globally consistent way, a significant improvement of the mosaic and 3D map accuracy was reached. To the best of our knowledge, this framework is the first complete pipeline for an endoscopic capsule robot based 3D map reconstruction containing all of the necessary steps for a reliable and accurate endoscopic 3D map. For the qualitative evaluations, a real pig stomach is employed. Moreover, for the first time in literature, a detailed and comprehensive quantitative analysis of each proposed pipeline modules is performed using a non-rigid esophagus gastro duodenoscopy simulator, four different endoscopic cameras, a magnetically activated soft capsule robot (MASCE), a sub-millimeter precise optical motion tracker and a fine-scale 3D optical scanner.

pi

link (url) Project Page [BibTex]

pi Turan, M., Yigit Pilavci, Y., Ganiyusufoglu, I., Araujo, H., Konukoglu, E., Sitti, M. Sparse-then-Dense Alignment based 3D Map Reconstruction Method for Endoscopic Capsule Robots ArXiv e-prints, August 2017 (article)

link (url) Project Page [BibTex]

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Dipole codes attractively encode glue functions

Ipparthi, D., Mastrangeli, M., Winslow, A.

Theoretical Computer Science, 671, pages: 19 - 25, August 2017, Computational Self-Assembly (article)

Abstract
Dipole words are sequences of magnetic dipoles, in which alike elements repel and opposite elements attract. Magnetic dipoles contrast with more general sets of bonding types, called glues, in which pairwise bonding strength is specified by a glue function. We prove that every glue function g has a set of dipole words, called a dipole code, that attractively encodes g: the pairwise attractions (positive or non-positive bond strength) between the words are identical to those of g. Moreover, we give such word sets of asymptotically optimal length. Similar results are obtained for a commonly used subclass of glue functions.

pi

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

pi Ipparthi, D., Mastrangeli, M., Winslow, A. Dipole codes attractively encode glue functions Theoretical Computer Science, 671, pages: 19 - 25, August 2017, Computational Self-Assembly (article)

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

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Physical and Behavioral Factors Improve Robot Hug Quality

Block, A. E., Kuchenbecker, K. J.

Workshop Paper (2 pages) presented at the RO-MAN Workshop on Social Interaction and Multimodal Expression for Socially Intelligent Robots, Lisbon, Portugal, August 2017 (misc)

Abstract
A hug is one of the most basic ways humans can express affection. As hugs are so common, a natural progression of robot development is to have robots one day hug humans as seamlessly as these intimate human-human interactions occur. This project’s purpose is to evaluate human responses to different robot physical characteristics and hugging behaviors. Specifically, we aim to test the hypothesis that a warm, soft, touch-sensitive PR2 humanoid robot can provide humans with satisfying hugs by matching both their hugging pressure and their hugging duration. Thirty participants experienced and evaluated twelve hugs with the robot, divided into three randomly ordered trials that focused on physical robot char- acteristics and nine randomly ordered trials with varied hug pressure and duration. We found that people prefer soft, warm hugs over hard, cold hugs. Furthermore, users prefer hugs that physically squeeze them and release immediately when they are ready for the hug to end.

hi

Project Page [BibTex]

hi Block, A. E., Kuchenbecker, K. J. Physical and Behavioral Factors Improve Robot Hug Quality Workshop Paper (2 pages) presented at the RO-MAN Workshop on Social Interaction and Multimodal Expression for Socially Intelligent Robots, Lisbon, Portugal, August 2017 (misc)

Project Page [BibTex]

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Crowdshaping Realistic 3D Avatars with Words

Streuber, S., Ramirez, M. Q., Black, M., Zuffi, S., O’Toole, A., Hill, M. Q., Hahn, C. A.

August 2017, Application PCT/EP2017/051954 (misc)

Abstract
A method for generating a body shape, comprising the steps: - receiving one or more linguistic descriptors related to the body shape; - retrieving an association between the one or more linguistic descriptors and a body shape; and - generating the body shape, based on the association.

ps

Google Patents [BibTex]

ps Streuber, S., Ramirez, M. Q., Black, M., Zuffi, S., O’Toole, A., Hill, M. Q., Hahn, C. A. Crowdshaping Realistic 3D Avatars with Words August 2017, Application PCT/EP2017/051954 (misc)

Google Patents [BibTex]

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Ungrounded Haptic Augmented Reality System for Displaying Texture and Friction

Culbertson, H., Kuchenbecker, K. J.

IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics, 22(4):1839-1849, August 2017 (article)

hi

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

hi Culbertson, H., Kuchenbecker, K. J. Ungrounded Haptic Augmented Reality System for Displaying Texture and Friction IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics, 22(4):1839-1849, August 2017 (article)

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

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Hypoxia‐enhanced adhesion of red blood cells in microscale flow

Kim, M., Alapan, Y., Adhikari, A., Little, J. A., Gurkan, U. A.

Microcirculation, 24(5):e12374, July 2017 (article)

Abstract
Abstract Objectives The advancement of microfluidic technology has facilitated the simulation of physiological conditions of the microcirculation, such as oxygen tension, fluid flow, and shear stress in these devices. Here, we present a micro‐gas exchanger integrated with microfluidics to study RBC adhesion under hypoxic flow conditions mimicking postcapillary venules. Methods We simulated a range of physiological conditions and explored RBC adhesion to endothelial or subendothelial components (FN or LN). Blood samples were injected into microchannels at normoxic or hypoxic physiological flow conditions. Quantitative evaluation of RBC adhesion was performed on 35 subjects with homozygous SCD. Results Significant heterogeneity in RBC adherence response to hypoxia was seen among SCD patients. RBCs from a HEA population showed a significantly greater increase in adhesion compared to RBCs from a HNA population, for both FN and LN. Conclusions The approach presented here enabled the control of oxygen tension in blood during microscale flow and the quantification of RBC adhesion in a cost‐efficient and patient‐specific manner. We identified a unique patient population in which RBCs showed enhanced adhesion in hypoxia in vitro. Clinical correlates suggest a more severe clinical phenotype in this subgroup.

pi

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

pi Kim, M., Alapan, Y., Adhikari, A., Little, J. A., Gurkan, U. A. Hypoxia‐enhanced adhesion of red blood cells in microscale flow Microcirculation, 24(5):e12374, July 2017 (article)

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

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Event-based State Estimation: An Emulation-based Approach

Trimpe, S.

IET Control Theory & Applications, 11(11):1684-1693, July 2017 (article)

Abstract
An event-based state estimation approach for reducing communication in a networked control system is proposed. Multiple distributed sensor agents observe a dynamic process and sporadically transmit their measurements to estimator agents over a shared bus network. Local event-triggering protocols ensure that data is transmitted only when necessary to meet a desired estimation accuracy. The event-based design is shown to emulate the performance of a centralised state observer design up to guaranteed bounds, but with reduced communication. The stability results for state estimation are extended to the distributed control system that results when the local estimates are used for feedback control. Results from numerical simulations and hardware experiments illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach in reducing network communication.

am ics

arXiv Supplementary material PDF DOI Project Page [BibTex]

am ics Trimpe, S. Event-based State Estimation: An Emulation-based Approach IET Control Theory & Applications, 11(11):1684-1693, July 2017 (article)

arXiv Supplementary material PDF DOI Project Page [BibTex]

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Learning Movement Primitive Libraries through Probabilistic Segmentation

Lioutikov, R., Neumann, G., Maeda, G., Peters, J.

International Journal of Robotics Research, 36(8):879-894, July 2017 (article)

ei

DOI Project Page [BibTex]

ei Lioutikov, R., Neumann, G., Maeda, G., Peters, J. Learning Movement Primitive Libraries through Probabilistic Segmentation International Journal of Robotics Research, 36(8):879-894, July 2017 (article)

DOI Project Page [BibTex]

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Soiled adhesive pads shear clean by slipping: a robust self-cleaning mechanism in climbing beetles

Amador, G., Endlein, T., Sitti, M.

Journal of The Royal Society Interface, 14(131):20170134, The Royal Society, June 2017 (article)

Abstract
Animals using adhesive pads to climb smooth surfaces face the problem of keeping their pads clean and functional. Here, a self-cleaning mechanism is proposed whereby soiled feet would slip on the surface due to a lack of adhesion but shed particles in return. Our study offers an in situ quantification of self-cleaning performance in fibrillar adhesives, using the dock beetle as a model organism. After beetles soiled their pads by stepping into patches of spherical beads, we found that their gait was significantly affected. Specifically, soiled pads slipped 10 times further than clean pads, with more particles deposited for longer slips. Like previous studies, we found that particle size affected cleaning performance. Large (45 μm) beads were removed most effectively, followed by medium (10 μm) and small (1 μm). Consistent with our results from climbing beetles, force measurements on freshly severed legs revealed larger detachment forces of medium particles from adhesive pads compared to a flat surface, possibly due to interlocking between fibres. By contrast, dock leaves showed an overall larger affinity to the beads and thus reduced the need for cleaning. Self-cleaning through slippage provides a mechanism robust to particle size and may inspire solutions for artificial adhesives.

pi

DOI Project Page [BibTex]

pi Amador, G., Endlein, T., Sitti, M. Soiled adhesive pads shear clean by slipping: a robust self-cleaning mechanism in climbing beetles Journal of The Royal Society Interface, 14(131):20170134, The Royal Society, June 2017 (article)

DOI Project Page [BibTex]

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Non-Equilibrium Assembly of Light-Activated Colloidal Mixtures

Singh, D. P., Choudhury, U., Fischer, P., Mark, A. G.

Advanced Materials, 29, pages: 1701328, June 2017, 32 (article)

Abstract
The collective phenomena exhibited by artificial active matter systems present novel routes to fabricating out-of-equilibrium microscale assemblies. Here, the crystallization of passive silica colloids into well-controlled 2D assemblies is shown, which is directed by a small number of self-propelled active colloids. The active colloids are titania–silica Janus particles that are propelled when illuminated by UV light. The strength of the attractive interaction and thus the extent of the assembled clusters can be regulated by the light intensity. A remarkably small number of the active colloids is sufficient to induce the assembly of the dynamic crystals. The approach produces rationally designed colloidal clusters and crystals with controllable sizes, shapes, and symmetries. This multicomponent active matter system offers the possibility of obtaining structures and assemblies that cannot be found in equilibrium systems.

pf

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

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Yield prediction in parallel homogeneous assembly

Ipparthi, D., Winslow, A., Sitti, M., Dorigo, M., Mastrangeli, M.

Soft Matter, 13, pages: 7595-7608, The Royal Society of Chemistry, June 2017 (article)

Abstract
We investigate the parallel assembly of two-dimensional{,} geometrically-closed modular target structures out of homogeneous sets of macroscopic components of varying anisotropy. The yield predicted by a chemical reaction network (CRN)-based model is quantitatively shown to reproduce experimental results over a large set of conditions. Scaling laws for parallel assembling systems are then derived from the model. By extending the validity of the CRN-based modelling{,} this work prompts analysis and solutions to the incompatible substructure problem.

pi

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

pi Ipparthi, D., Winslow, A., Sitti, M., Dorigo, M., Mastrangeli, M. Yield prediction in parallel homogeneous assembly Soft Matter, 13, pages: 7595-7608, The Royal Society of Chemistry, June 2017 (article)

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

Thumb xl kim et al 2017 advanced materials
Nanodiamonds That Swim

Kim, J. T., Choudhury, U., Hyeon-Ho, J., Fischer, P.

Advanced Materials, 29(30):1701024, June 2017, Back Cover (article)

Abstract
Nanodiamonds are emerging as nanoscale quantum probes for bio-sensing and imaging. This necessitates the development of new methods to accurately manipulate their position and orientation in aqueous solutions. The realization of an “active” nanodiamond (ND) swimmer in fluids, composed of a ND crystal containing nitrogen vacancy centers and a light-driven self-thermophoretic micromotor, is reported. The swimmer is propelled by a local temperature gradient created by laser illumination on its metal-coated side. Its locomotion—from translational to rotational motion—is successfully controlled by shape-dependent hydrodynamic interactions. The precise engineering of the swimmer's geometry is achieved by self-assembly combined with physical vapor shadow growth. The optical addressability of the suspended ND swimmers is demonstrated by observing the electron spin resonance in the presence of magnetic fields. Active motion at the nanoscale enables new sensing capabilities combined with active transport including, potentially, in living organisms.

pf

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

pf Kim, J. T., Choudhury, U., Hyeon-Ho, J., Fischer, P. Nanodiamonds That Swim Advanced Materials, 29(30):1701024, June 2017, Back Cover (article)

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

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Three‐dimensional patterning in biomedicine: Importance and applications in neuropharmacology

Ajay, V. S., Tanmay, G., Madu, B., Byung‐Wook, P., Thomas, E., Metin, S.

Journal of Biomedical Materials Research Part B: Applied Biomaterials, 106(3):1369-1382, June 2017 (article)

Abstract
Abstract Nature manufactures biological systems in three dimensions with precisely controlled spatiotemporal profiles on hierarchical length and time scales. In this article, we review 3D patterning of biological systems on synthetic platforms for neuropharmacological applications. We briefly describe 3D versus 2D chemical and topographical patterning methods and their limitations. Subsequently, an overview of introducing a third dimension in neuropharmacological research with delineation of chemical and topographical roles is presented. Finally, toward the end of this article, an explanation of how 3D patterning has played a pivotal role in relevant fields of neuropharmacology to understand neurophysiology during development, normal health, and disease conditions is described. The future prospects of organs‐on‐a‐‐like devices to mimic patterned blood–brain barrier in the context of neurotherapeutic discovery and development for the prioritization of lead candidates, membrane potential, and toxicity testing are also described. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater, 106B: 1369–1382, 2018.

pi

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

pi Ajay, V. S., Tanmay, G., Madu, B., Byung‐Wook, P., Thomas, E., Metin, S. Three‐dimensional patterning in biomedicine: Importance and applications in neuropharmacology Journal of Biomedical Materials Research Part B: Applied Biomaterials, 106(3):1369-1382, June 2017 (article)

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

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Physically Interactive Exercise Games with a Baxter Robot

Fitter, N. T., Kuchenbecker, K. J.

Hands-on demonstration presented at the IEEE World Haptics Conference (WHC), Munich, Germany, June 2017 (misc)

hi

Project Page [BibTex]

hi Fitter, N. T., Kuchenbecker, K. J. Physically Interactive Exercise Games with a Baxter Robot Hands-on demonstration presented at the IEEE World Haptics Conference (WHC), Munich, Germany, June 2017 (misc)

Project Page [BibTex]

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Perception of Force and Stiffness in the Presence of Low-Frequency Haptic Noise

Gurari, N., Okamura, A. M., Kuchenbecker, K. J.

PLoS ONE, 12(6):e0178605, June 2017 (article)

hi

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

hi Gurari, N., Okamura, A. M., Kuchenbecker, K. J. Perception of Force and Stiffness in the Presence of Low-Frequency Haptic Noise PLoS ONE, 12(6):e0178605, June 2017 (article)

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

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Proton Pack: Visuo-Haptic Surface Data Recording

Burka, A., Kuchenbecker, K. J.

Hands-on demonstration presented at the IEEE World Haptics Conference (WHC), Munich, Germany, June 2017 (misc)

hi

Project Page [BibTex]

hi Burka, A., Kuchenbecker, K. J. Proton Pack: Visuo-Haptic Surface Data Recording Hands-on demonstration presented at the IEEE World Haptics Conference (WHC), Munich, Germany, June 2017 (misc)

Project Page [BibTex]

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Teaching a Robot to Collaborate with a Human Via Haptic Teleoperation

Hu, S., Kuchenbecker, K. J.

Work-in-progress paper (2 pages) presented at the IEEE World Haptics Conference (WHC), Munich, Germany, June 2017 (misc)

hi

Project Page [BibTex]

hi Hu, S., Kuchenbecker, K. J. Teaching a Robot to Collaborate with a Human Via Haptic Teleoperation Work-in-progress paper (2 pages) presented at the IEEE World Haptics Conference (WHC), Munich, Germany, June 2017 (misc)

Project Page [BibTex]

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Tail-Assisted Mobility and Stability Enhancement in Yaw/Pitch Motions of a Water-Running Robot

Kim, H., Sitti, M., Seo, T.

IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics, 22(3):1207–1217, IEEE, June 2017 (article)

Abstract
Water-running robots have been developed inspired by a basilisk lizard, which demonstrates highly agile, stable, and energy-efficient locomotion on water surfaces. Current water-running robots are not as stable and agile as their biological counterparts. This study shows how the stability of a water-running robot in the pitch direction can be improved by using an active tail to enable increased propulsion. The mobility of the robot is also increased. To generate force in the pitch and yaw directions, a two-degrees-of-freedom tail is implemented with two circular plates to provide drag. We developed two types of dynamic models for pitch and yaw behavior, and the results are recursively calculated by considering the correlation between the models. The relationship between pitch motion and propulsion was analyzed by simulations. The steering behavior of the robot is also validated while considering the pitch behavior. Experiments were conducted to verify the simulation results.

pi

DOI [BibTex]

pi Kim, H., Sitti, M., Seo, T. Tail-Assisted Mobility and Stability Enhancement in Yaw/Pitch Motions of a Water-Running Robot IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics, 22(3):1207–1217, IEEE, June 2017 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

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How Should Robots Hug?

Block, A. E., Kuchenbecker, K. J.

Work-in-progress paper (2 pages) presented at the IEEE World Haptics Conference (WHC), Munich, Germany, June 2017 (misc)

hi

Project Page [BibTex]

hi Block, A. E., Kuchenbecker, K. J. How Should Robots Hug? Work-in-progress paper (2 pages) presented at the IEEE World Haptics Conference (WHC), Munich, Germany, June 2017 (misc)

Project Page [BibTex]

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Evaluation of a Vibrotactile Simulator for Dental Caries Detection

Kuchenbecker, K. J., Parajon, R., Maggio, M. P.

Simulation in Healthcare, 12(3):148-156, June 2017 (article)

hi

DOI [BibTex]

hi Kuchenbecker, K. J., Parajon, R., Maggio, M. P. Evaluation of a Vibrotactile Simulator for Dental Caries Detection Simulation in Healthcare, 12(3):148-156, June 2017 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

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Propulsion and Chemotaxis in Bacteria-Driven Microswimmers

Zhuang, J., Park, B., Sitti, M.

Advanced Science, 4(9):1700109, May 2017 (article)

Abstract
Despite the large body of experimental work recently on biohybrid microsystems, few studies have focused on theoretical modeling of such systems, which is essential to understand their underlying functioning mechanisms and hence design them optimally for a given application task. Therefore, this study focuses on developing a mathematical model to describe the 3D motion and chemotaxis of a type of widely studied biohybrid microswimmer, where spherical microbeads are driven by multiple attached bacteria. The model is developed based on the biophysical observations of the experimental system and is validated by comparing the model simulation with experimental 3D swimming trajectories and other motility characteristics, including mean squared displacement, speed, diffusivity, and turn angle. The chemotaxis modeling results of the microswimmers also agree well with the experiments, where a collective chemotactic behavior among multiple bacteria is observed. The simulation result implies that such collective chemotaxis behavior is due to a synchronized signaling pathway across the bacteria attached to the same microswimmer. Furthermore, the dependencies of the motility and chemotaxis of the microswimmers on certain system parameters, such as the chemoattractant concentration gradient, swimmer body size, and number of attached bacteria, toward an optimized design of such biohybrid system are studied. The optimized microswimmers would be used in targeted cargo, e.g., drug, imaging agent, gene, and RNA, transport and delivery inside the stagnant or low-velocity fluids of the human body as one of their potential biomedical applications.

pi

DOI Project Page [BibTex]

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Dynamic and programmable self-assembly of micro-rafts at the air-water interface

Wang, W., Giltinan, J., Zakharchenko, S., Sitti, M.

Science Advances, 3(5):e1602522, American Association for the Advancement of Science, May 2017 (article)

Abstract
Dynamic self-assembled material systems constantly consume energy to maintain their spatiotemporal structures and functions. Programmable self-assembly translates information from individual parts to the collective whole. Combining dynamic and programmable self-assembly in a single platform opens up the possibilities to investigate both types of self-assembly simultaneously and to explore their synergy. This task is challenging because of the difficulty in finding suitable interactions that are both dissipative and programmable. We present a dynamic and programmable self-assembling material system consisting of spinning at the air-water interface circular magnetic micro-rafts of radius 50 μm and with cosinusoidal edge-height profiles. The cosinusoidal edge-height profiles not only create a net dissipative capillary repulsion that is sustained by continuous torque input but also enable directional assembly of micro-rafts. We uncover the layered arrangement of micro-rafts in the patterns formed by dynamic self-assembly and offer mechanistic insights through a physical model and geometric analysis. Furthermore, we demonstrate programmable self-assembly and show that a 4-fold rotational symmetry encoded in individual micro-rafts translates into 90° bending angles and square-based tiling in the assembled structures of micro-rafts. We anticipate that our dynamic and programmable material system will serve as a model system for studying nonequilibrium dynamics and statistical mechanics in the future

pi

DOI [BibTex]

pi Wang, W., Giltinan, J., Zakharchenko, S., Sitti, M. Dynamic and programmable self-assembly of micro-rafts at the air-water interface Science Advances, 3(5):e1602522, American Association for the Advancement of Science, May 2017 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

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Presentation of functional groups on self-assembled supramolecular peptide nanofibers mimicking glycosaminoglycans for directed mesenchymal stem cell differentiation

Yasa, O., Uysal, O., Ekiz, M. S., Guler, M. O., Tekinay, A. B.

J. Mater. Chem. B, 5, pages: 4890-4900, The Royal Society of Chemistry, May 2017 (article)

Abstract
Organizational complexity and functional diversity of the extracellular matrix regulate cellular behaviors. The extracellular matrix is composed of various proteins in the form of proteoglycans{,} glycoproteins{,} and nanofibers whose types and combinations change depending on the tissue type. Proteoglycans{,} which are proteins that are covalently attached to glycosaminoglycans{,} contribute to the complexity of the microenvironment of the cells. The sulfation degree of the glycosaminoglycans is an important and distinct feature at specific developmental stages and tissue types. Peptide amphiphile nanofibers can mimic natural glycosaminoglycans and/or proteoglycans{,} and they form a synthetic nanofibrous microenvironment where cells can proliferate and differentiate towards different lineages. In this study{,} peptide nanofibers were used to provide varying degrees of sulfonation mimicking the natural glycosaminoglycans by forming a microenvironment for the survival and differentiation of stem cells. The effects of glucose{,} carboxylate{,} and sulfonate groups on the peptide nanofibers were investigated by considering the changes in the differentiation profiles of rat mesenchymal stem cells in the absence of any specific differentiation inducers in the culture medium. The results showed that a higher sulfonate-to-glucose ratio is associated with adipogenic differentiation and a higher carboxylate-to-glucose ratio is associated with osteochondrogenic differentiation of the rat mesenchymal stem cells. Overall{,} these results demonstrate that supramolecular peptide nanosystems can be used to understand the fine-tunings of the extracellular matrix such as sulfation profile on specific cell types.

pi

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

pi Yasa, O., Uysal, O., Ekiz, M. S., Guler, M. O., Tekinay, A. B. Presentation of functional groups on self-assembled supramolecular peptide nanofibers mimicking glycosaminoglycans for directed mesenchymal stem cell differentiation J. Mater. Chem. B, 5, pages: 4890-4900, The Royal Society of Chemistry, May 2017 (article)

link (url) DOI [BibTex]

Thumb xl drotlef et al 2017 advanced materials
Bioinspired Composite Microfibers for Skin Adhesion and Signal Amplification of Wearable Sensors

Drotlef, D., Amjadi, M., Yunusa, M., Sitti, M.

Advanced Materials, 29(28):1701353, May 2017, Back Cover (article)

Abstract
A facile approach is proposed for superior conformation and adhesion of wearable sensors to dry and wet skin. Bioinspired skin-adhesive films are composed of elastomeric microfibers decorated with conformal and mushroom-shaped vinylsiloxane tips. Strong skin adhesion is achieved by crosslinking the viscous vinylsiloxane tips directly on the skin surface. Furthermore, composite microfibrillar adhesive films possess a high adhesion strength of 18 kPa due to the excellent shape adaptation of the vinylsiloxane tips to the multiscale roughness of the skin. As a utility of the skin-adhesive films in wearable-device applications, they are integrated with wearable strain sensors for respiratory and heart-rate monitoring. The signal-to-noise ratio of the strain sensor is significantly improved to 59.7 because of the considerable signal amplification of microfibrillar skin-adhesive films.

pi

DOI [BibTex]

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Bioadhesive Bacterial Microswimmers for Targeted Drug Delivery in the Urinary and Gastrointestinal Tracts

Mostaghaci, B., Yasa, O., Zhuang, J., Sitti, M.

Advanced Science, 4(6):1700058, May 2017 (article)

Abstract
Bacteria-driven biohybrid microswimmers (bacteriabots), which integrate motile bacterial cells and functional synthetic cargo parts (e.g., microparticles encapsulating drug), are recently studied for targeted drug delivery. However, adhesion of such bacteriabots to the tissues on the site of a disease (which can increase the drug delivery efficiency) is not studied yet. Here, this paper proposes an approach to attach bacteriabots to certain types of epithelial cells (expressing mannose on the membrane), based on the affinity between lectin molecules on the tip of bacterial type I pili and mannose molecules on the epithelial cells. It is shown that the bacteria can anchor their cargo particles to mannose-functionalized surfaces and mannose-expressing cells (ATCC HTB-9) using the lectin–mannose bond. The attachment mechanism is confirmed by comparing the adhesion of bacteriabots fabricated from bacterial strains with or without type I pili to mannose-covered surfaces and cells. The proposed bioadhesive motile system can be further improved by expressing more specific adhesion moieties on the membrane of the bacteria.

pi

DOI Project Page [BibTex]