Tremor Suppression Control of Meal-Assist Robot with Adaptive Filter

A robot that supports independent living by assisting with eating and other activities involving the use of the hand using the operator's own hand would be helpful for people suffering from tremors of the hand or any other body part. In this study, the proposed adaptive filter estimates tremor frequency with a time-varying property and individual differences online, and insulates the voluntary motion signal from the sensor signal containing tremor components. As a result, the developed human-machine interface makes it possible for the person with a tremor to manipulate the supporting robot without causing operability to deteriorate and without hazards due to improper operation.